Though the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on the citizens of Maharashtra, there are signs of a decline as we head into the festive season. As per a new report, private hospitals in Mumbai are saying that they may look to decrease the number of reserved beds in their hospitals after Diwali.
This comes as more than 50 per cent of the reserved COVID-19 beds in the city’s private hospitals reportedly remain vacant. Hospitals say that this is causing big financial losses for them, which ultimately led them to take the call to free up reserved beds post-Diwali.
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The Maharashtra Government had asked private hospitals to reserve a certain portion of their overall beds for COVID-19 patients at the height of the pandemic earlier this year.
Dr V Ravishankar, Chief Executive Officer at Lilavati Hospital said - “The daily burden of COVID-19 cases has decreased drastically. At our CCC-2 (Covid Care Centre for mildly symptomatic patients), the number of patients has dropped from 80 to 16.”
Currently, the state has a total of 4,192 beds for COVID-19 patients reserved in Mumbai’s private hospitals. Of these beds, 2,204 are said to be vacant. Further, around 1,007 intensive care unit (ICU) beds are currently available in the city with 422 lying vacant. The city has a total of 477 ventilator beds of which 162 are free.
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The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has backed the call made by private hospitals. “If Mumbai witnesses a second wave, the authority can always bring back the rules. It is better to re-implement it rather than keep empty beds reserved. Hospitals need to pay money from their pockets for the maintenance of the beds and the equipment,” the President of IMA, Dr Avinash Bhondwe said. “If the government wants to keep the beds reserved, they should pay the basic expenditure amount,” he added.
Hospitals have said that they are witnessing a growth in the number of patients with non-COVID ailments. As per the government’s rules, the percentage of bed, as well as the price capping on patients, will remain until the end of November.
A senior health official said, “The next few months are critical due to the festivals. After Ganesh puja, we had witnessed a rise in the number of COVID-19 cases, so we can’t let our guards down during Diwali.”
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