Pvt ward cost up, but AIIMS cuts test fees – ET HealthWorld

New Delhi: From June 1, you will need to shell out Rs 6,000 a day for ‘A’ class/deluxe room at AIIMS– nearly double the amount charged earlier. For ‘B’ class/ordinary rooms, the daily charge will be Rs 3,000 per day from existing Rs 2,200, an order issued by the hospital medical superintendent on Thursday stated.

“The 10 days advance deposit for the patients for ‘A’ class/deluxe rooms will be Rs 63,000 and for ‘B’ class/ordinary rooms, it will be Rs 33,000,” the order said.

A separate order issued by the institute stated that user charges for all investigations/laboratory services currently costing up to Rs 300 per procedure have been abolished with immediate effect.

“The revenue generated by levying user charges on investigations/laboratory services costing less than Rs 300 isn’t much but it causes avoidable harassment to patients and their family members who have to stand in queue to make the payments. The abolition of such charges is, therefore, a positive step indeed,” a senior doctor at the hospital said.

He, however, added that the hike in private room charges was too steep.

AIIMS sources said the idea behind increasing the private ward charges was to generate additional revenue from those who could pay to drive down the cost for various services and procedures in the general wards.