Healthcare Costs Surge in Hyderabad: Telangana Government makes the poor pay through the nose

Hyderabad: As the entire state administration is busy fighting the highly contagious COVID-19, lack of easy access to general treatments for chronic ailments such as hypertension, diabetes and kidney-related issues are taking a toll on the health of people, especially the underprivileged, in the city and on the outskirts.

With a ban on services by RMPs and PMPs and government hospitals yet to resume OP and general duties, the poor are suffering silently, unable to afford costlier facilities at private hospitals.

A woman from Shahstripuram suffering from severe back pain was rushed to a far-away hospital. She had been on medication following removal of kidney stones.

She was charged Rs 20,000 after a day's treatment and abruptly sent home, informed Syed Shoukat, a resident of same colony. She would not have had to suffer physically and financially if healthcare facilities were allowed to function, he added.

There are several similar cases of people reeling under stress and agony sans any medical facility in their neaby areas, observed Kamelakar Jitender, a social activist.

As per a conservative estimate, there are over 10,000 private clinics that spread in the densely populated areas of city besides, urban primary healthcare centres and government-run dispensaries.

The number of clinics and dispensaries in the city could easily be ascertained from the presence of around 9,500 medical shops. "A large number of the poor approach locally available clinics to treat their routine ailments and seasonal diseases.

However, these clinics are by and large closed their doors ever since the lockdown, putting an unbearable burden on the poor patients, said Vinod Kumar, another social activist.

Government should allow doctors to operate clinics during, by stipulating all necessary conditions, to help people get access to medical and diagnostic facilitates, opine the activists.