Sordid practice, willing actors

There are strong voices that decry the complete health-checks

Strange hoardings made big news in Mumbai, announcing: “Honest opinion; no commission to doctors." attacking the practice of cuts and commissions in the referral of patients in Indian healthcare.

Sanjay Nagral
July 9, 2017, The Hindu

In June, as the southwest monsoon rolled into Mumbai, strange hoardings at prominent sites sponsored by a well-known cardiac hospital made big news. In contrast to the usual claims of “cutting edge” medicine, these advertisements ads announced: “Honest opinion; no commission to doctors.” What was being attacked was the practice of cuts and commissions in the referral of patients in Indian health care. Predictably, this raised the hackles of doctors and medical associations who demanded that they be pulled down. Dr. Ramakant Panda, the founder of the hospital, (who had operated on former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh) defended them and upped the ante by holding a press conference with other doctors where a campaign against this practice was launched. With uncharacteristic efficiency the State government appointed a committee with a brief to draft a law to curb commissions in health care.

As this episode in the very old saga of “cut practice” awaits its outcome, it’s important to dissect what lies beneath. What needs to be uncovered has repercussions for something all of us will inevitably need — decent, trustworthy health care.

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