Benchmark hospital room cost against 3-star hotel tariff: Panel

A parliamentary standing committee on health and family welfare has recommended linking private hospital room rents to the average tariff of nearby three-star hotels. This proposal is part of the committee's report on healthcare affordability and accessibility, which highlights the need for a transparent mechanism in fixing room charges. Private hospitals in major metropolitan cities could see their room rents limited to a maximum of the price charged by three-star hotels in the vicinity.

According to the 80th National Sample Survey data, average hospitalization costs were significantly lower in government hospitals - Rs 6,631 - compared to private hospitals - Rs 50,508. Out-of-pocket expenditure for childbirth also varied greatly, with private hospitals averaging Rs 37,630 per case, nearly 16 times more than the Rs 2,299 in government facilities.

Hospital administrators, however, contested the proposed comparison with hotel tariffs, arguing that medical infrastructures, staffing, and support services differ substantially in hospitals and hotels. The committee, chaired by SP MP Ram Gopal Yadav, suggests instituting a legal framework to cap charges on essential treatments and procedures, require upfront disclosure of costs, and establish a fast-track grievance redressal mechanism for billing complaints.

Beyond room rents, the committee proposes standardised package rates for common medical and surgical procedures, advance cost estimates for complex treatments, financial navigators to help patients understand costs and insurance options, and 'Continuum of Care' packages covering screening, treatment, and palliative care all under a single capped payment.

The committee urges the government to raise public health spending to 2.5% of GDP, improve government hospitals' infrastructure and services, expand access to affordable medicines, and ensure stricter enforcement of the Clinical Establishations Act.