38 year-old Sarvesh has been struggling for his hip and knee replacement surgery for the past six months due to his inability to afford Rs 8 lakh, the toal cost of the treatment.

COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

His family has approached the All India Institute of Medical Sciences but the country's premier medical institute has denied treatment free of cost saying "due to insufficient fund at AIIMS, the expensive treatment cannot be provided to him."

In its plea before the Delhi High Court, AIIMS said for the surgery requisite implants are to be procured as AIIMS cannot provide them due to "budgetary constraints."

Sarvesh, the only bread winner of the family of four was diagnosed with crippling disease Reactive Arthritis also known as (Reiter's disease) in 2012 and needs total hip and knee replacement surgery. Filing an affidavit before the court, Dr D K Sharma, Medical Superintendent, AIIMS said, "It is relevant to mention here that the non-plan budget of the hospital used for procurement of materials and supplies including medicines, surgical items is barely sufficient to ensure procurement of generally used items (cleaning materials, linen, stationary) and common emergency medicines and surgical items for hospitalized patients.

"Further, it is not possible nor practical to provide such costly items like implants etc. to all patients from the available hospital budget. That estimated cost of hip (right & left) and knee(right and left) implants required approximately Rs 8 lakh," reads the affidavit. Seeking a court order, AIIMS informed the court that "the funds received from the government are not sufficient to perform high-class treatment and expensive surgeries at AIIMS and it is the duty of central and state governments to frame and approve new policies by which huge fund will be released through which the high class treatments and expensive surgeries can be performed at AIIMS."

Sarvesh's wife approached the Delhi as well as Central government and has been running from pillar to post for financial help but so far no funds under the various health schemes have been approved. Although the Centre's schemes like Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (under this scheme fund is granted by central government) and state government's schemes like Delhi Arogya Kosh , Delhi Arogya Kosh, Delhi Kalyan Samiti and Chief Minister's Relief Fund are there but due to lack of formalities no assistance has been received.

The patient's lawyer Ashok Agarwal told dna that hundreds of poor patients approach AIIMS for free treatment but the institute is helpless. "In its reply has admitted that AIIMS is a health care institute in India established by the Government of India for providing better medical facilities to the public at large free of cost, as such no money is charged from the patients, besides some nominal registration fees but expressed its inability to provide treatment to poor due to insufficient fund which is unjust and violative of fundamental right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution," Agarwal said.

Finally the family is waiting for the judgment of the high court, which will hear their plea and AIIMS reply on October 29.