Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Sept 5: Senior People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leader and former Minister Naeem Akhtar has expressed grave concerns over the suspension of treatment services in private hospitals under the Ayushman Bharat scheme.
Akhtar said the disruption, caused by non-payment of funds, has left hundreds of patients in dire straits.
He termed the situation a “severe breach of trust” by the Government, affecting both the patients who rely on these services and the hospitals that provide them. Private hospitals in the region have ceased operations under the Ayushman Bharat scheme due to unpaid claims pending since March 2024.
“It is scandalous and frightening that private hospitals in Jammu and Kashmir have not received payments since March, with the outstanding amount reportedly standing at Rs 160 crore. This delay has led to immense suffering for patients, especially those undergoing critical treatments such as dialysis in private hospitals, which government hospitals lack the capacity to provide,” the PDP leader said.
Akhtar further urged the administration to immediately release the pending funds, warning that the current situation exposes the government’s failure to deliver on its promises. “On one hand, they claim to have brought great benefits to the UT, but this incident clearly busts that false narrative,” he remarked.
He said that the delay in payments under the Ayushman Bharat scheme has particularly affected kidney patients, who rely heavily on private hospitals for dialysis due to the inadequate facilities in Government hospitals.
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