Inflated billing at hospitals gives more pain to patients, burns insurance covers: Report

The newspaper report, citing a head of an insurance company, said hospitals are inflating bills by applying overpriced structures.

A rise in medical inflation and new billing practices seem to have caused more pain for both patients and insurance companies, according to an October 14 report by the Economic Times.

The healthcare sector has seen hospitals billing patients for ‘disinfection’ and adding 'peak charges' for operation theatres, which is in line with what cab-hailing apps charge customers for, the ET report said.

The newspaper report, citing the head of an insurance company, said hospitals are inflating bills by applying overpriced structures. In result, insurance companies that used to offer comprehensive packages to customers are now facing unbundling of services, the ET report said.

The insurance companies pointed out that hospitals are looking out for opportunities to hike costs for services that once used to come under a standard package, the paper said.

The insurers are now working with the General Insurance Council and hospitals to standardise the cost, it added.

Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.

Earlier, Moneycontrol had reported that urban residents of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh bore a heavier healthcare burden in FY23, with per-capita hospitalisation costs exceeding the national average, an analysis of statistics ministry data showed.

Hospitalisation charges accounted for 2.1 percent of the per capita income of an urban resident of Bihar and 1.7 percent in UP, while the national average was 0.8 percent.