government has not taken any action to control it. The so called“ efficient” corporate hospitals will freely deceive the patients continuously where all parts of human body become commercial commodities.
The hospital referral is a very big scam known to all. In the giant corporate hospitals like Apollo, Fortis, Apex, the referral programme continues to function. The agents of this system will get money for referring patients. The agent who refers 40 patients will get one lakh rupees is an example for this. This scam is the centre for various unnecessary and fraud treatments.
The diagnostic tests are another big scam. In our country the pathology labs system is the biggest profitable business. They give huge commissions and incentives to doctors for prescribing enormous unnecessary diagnostic tests. The income tax department raid on pathology labs in Bangalore could trace more than Rs 100 crore cash and 3.5 kg gold. This is for giving commissions to doctors. In India, though more than 2 lakh diagnostic labs are functioning, only 1000 labs are licensed.
The big pharmaceutical companies will give huge commissions, arrange foreign trips and various incentives to doctors for prescribing their products. The doctors prescribe them excessively irrespective of the need. Thus, the effectiveness of the medicine will disappear. Only the commissions will become important. A big scam of Rs 1000 crore commissions given by pharma companies to doctors has been exposed during the period of Covid-19.
A conspiracy between pharma companies and corporate hospitals is exposed by‘ India Today’. It is reported that the EMCURE company produces a cancer drug, Temcure and supplies to hospitals at Rs 1950 /-. But the MRP rate will be Rs 18645 /- which will be charged by the corporate hospitals. The relationship of conspiracy has been December-2025 strengthening between pharma companies and corporate hospitals especially after Covid-19.
In order to charge sky rocketing hospital bills for fraudulent treatments, the hospitals terrorise the patient about the disease, put them in ICU, though not necessary. This phenomenon became quite normal with the support of ruling class. A large pharma company in Telangana could build the largest corporate hospital in the shortest period during Covid- 19 is a glaring example of this. Everyone can understand the prevailing situation in the medical field at present.
When the corporate hospitals provide cash less health services for health insurance policy holders, then they charge double. For example, in Delhi for the surgery to remove gallbladder, the charges are Rs 65- 80 thousand without health insurance and Rs 1.2-1.5 lakh with health insurance. In fact, this is known to all, as it became a normal phenomenon everywhere in India.
The profit oriented corporate hospitals could transform the treatment into a powerful commercial commodity. It is a strong tool of exploitation. The health services are not accessible to majority. All this shows clearly the serious failure of the government to control the evergrowing scams in health sector. The study of‘ Indian Express’ in 2020 shows that the corporate hospitals with their fraud treatments could earn Rs 830 crore. The government-imposed penalties to the tune of Rs 240 crore on them. Thus, the fraudulent treatments of corporate hospitals are legally a beneficial business. The government is still encouraging the corporate health care with its neo-liberal policies and destroying the public health care system is really a serious tragedy. Health Insurance Companies- Policies- Frauds:
The health services of the profit greed corporate hospitals will normally be costly. It is surprising to notice that the establishment of profit hunger corporate health insurance companies is on the rise to ensure the expensive corporate health care. However, the health insurance became inevitable. In India, 68 percent people possess some form or another health insurance policies. The private health insurance companies which collect high level annual premiums will reject the hospital bills on various pretexts when the policy holder goes to hospital for treatment.
According to the local Circles Survey, which has surveyed one lakh people in 327 districts, partial or full rejection of bills in the last three years is 50 percent. Out of the 14,621 complaints received by Insurance Samadhan in 2024-25, 76 percent is related to health insurance. Totally rejected claims are 9528. The information given by Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India( IRDAI) says that the value of rejected bills of health insurance companies is Rs 26,000 crore in 2024 Financial Year. This is 19 percent higher than the previous year. Thus, the rejection of claims is on the rise continuously.
The Insurance- Ombudsman, which has been established to solve the issues of policy holders itself is weak. Many call it as a toothless tiger. The complaints registered in the IRDAI are 31,470 in 2024 FY. Out of them Star Health stands first with 13,308 complaints, Care Health is in the second place with 3,718 complaints and third place goes to Niva Bupa with Rs 2,511 complaints. Every Health Insurance Company will release 48 page banned corporate hospitals list every year. This list will change continuously. The cashless health services will not be available in the banned hospitals. Moreover, the bills from these hospitals will not be reimbursed by the Health Insurance Companies. Is it possible to verify the list when a policy holder gets
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