Fraud in Ayushman Bharat scheme, action against 13 J&K hospitals

J&K state health agency (SHA) has suspended the empanelment of 13 hospitals and imposed heavy penalties on 17 others for their involvement in fraud while implementing the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY).

Officials said over Rs 1.77 crore have been imposed as a penalty on the hospitals involved in fraudulent activities in 2022 out of which over Rs 1.34 crore have been recovered so far by the J&K SHA.

As per official sources, the hospitals which have faced the action include Ibn Sina Hospital, Rs 24 lakh penalty imposed and empanelment suspended; Quality Care Hospital, Rs 6.64 lakh penalty imposed; Narayana Hospital, Rs 54.62 lakh penalty imposed; Ess Bee Hospital, empanelment suspended; Waseem Memorial Hospital, empanelment suspended.

In addition, Florence Hospital in Chanapora (Srinagar), Rs 5 lakh penalty imposed; Shadab hospital has, Rs 22 lakh penalty imposed; Mohammadiya hospital, Rs 6 lakh penalty imposed; Kidney hospital in Sonwar (Srinagar), Rs 18.72 lakh penalty imposed. These hospitals also faced suspension of their empanelment in February last year.

KD Eye Clinic Hospital, Rs 1 lakh penalty and suspension of empanelment; ASCOMS in Jammu, Rs 2.66 lakh penalty; while Al-Noor Hospital, Midcity Hospital, and South City Nursing Home faced the suspension of their empanelment in September last year.

Centre for Eye care hospital, Rs 1.64 penalty and suspension of empanelment in December last year. Noora Hospital in Srinagar, Rs 5.54 lakh penalty imposed; Baba Nayak Hospital, Rs 69,000 penalty; Raksha Kidney Hospital, Rs 20 lakh penalty; and National Hospital Jammu, empanelment suspended.