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Hospital caught charging in excess. Ordered to refund - Consumer Forum

The National Consumer Commission has directed Fortis Health Management (North) Ltd to refund the excess it had charged on its patient, Meenu Jain, holding the hospital in Jaipur guilty of unfair trade practice. The woman was taken to the ventilator in a serious condition where five injections costing Rs 18,990 each was administered daily for five days. She was cured and the entire bill of Rs 7 lakh was paid without protest. Later, it was found that the injections cost only Rs 9,000 in the open market. The hospital did not respond to her request for the bill of the hospital's medical supplier. She moved the district consumer forum for refund of the excess payment. It asked the hospital to pay Rs 2 lakh. The state commission dismissed the hospital's appeal. The National Commission asked the hospital to refund half the price as it had "indirectly imposed unjustified and unreasonable conditions" on the patient. It blamed the patient also for taking an "opportunistic attitude." The commission further remarked that though the hospital has "every right to earn profits from its pharmacy, it should be reasonable or acceptable."

Article referred: http://www.business-standard.com/article/opinion/demolition-of-building-does-not-end-tenancy-114080300735_1.html

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