The experience in Chandigarh is that the ECHS is working very well. May be those looking after the Polyclinic here are more efficient and empathize with the Veterans!! The famous saying THERE ARE NO GOOD OR BAD UNITS BUT ONLY GOOD OR BAD OFFICERS, holds good for Polyclinics also!!
There are many cases of wrong and inflated billing as also unethical actions by some empaneled hospitals, including the best in the area!! Officers who approve these bills have found many glaring anomalies.
There are also many cases where the Hospitals concerned have delayed submission of bills by 2-3 months!! In such cases delays will take place. Some of these hospitals have hired Army Medical Corps/ other retired officers and tasked them to get the bills passed expeditiously. By and large, bills are being cleared in time.
While we must try and get the best possible medical aid thru ECHS, we should also look at the positive side of the Scheme. There are cases where Rs 20 Lakhs or so have been spent on treatment of a single patient!!
We have to watch out and guard against unethical actions by the empaneled hospitals like, unnecessary tests, doing a procedure/ operations which are not required/ necessary, not treating ECHS patients at par with other patients etc. We should bring such cases to the notice of the ECHS authorities.
Let us have more views and specific cases which can be brought to the notice of ECHS authorities in order to improve the functioning of the scheme. Report My Signal Blog will endeavor to collate these.
Lt Gen Harbhajan Singh (Retd)
Brig Sukhwindar writes...
To my mind, the ECHS needs some changes. We should answer the following:
1. Why should ECHS empanelled Hospitals be given a 'free budget' to treat patients? We need to lay down expenses per patient in the days of technology when 'all parts of the body can be replaced'. No one wants to leave this world healthy.
2. Once a patient has exhausted his 'limit', he should take treatment from Military Hospitals incl R & R.
3. Our Military Hospitals can treat dependants of the Serving Personnel, but NOT the ESMs. 'Use and throw' attitude does not go very well in any management philosophy. I can't understand this logic either.
4. AGI could consider mediclaim policies for personnel after they have exhausted their limits set for ECHS, with 50% paid by the ESMs. We could prevail on the insurance companies for this, and invest with them if not already being done.
Unless we set financial limits per ESM patient, and ask ESMs to share part bills once this limit is exhausted or make AGI intervene by way of mediclaim insurance, the budget allocated would never be sufficient for ECHS. And malpractices will continue- most in the chain would want to 'gain'.
Brigadier (Retired) Sukhwindar Singh
Svipja- Partners in Progress
