Pune : Several private hospitals in Pune have raised serious concerns over the activities of unscrupulous agents allegedly extorting money from patients’ relatives while coercing hospital managements to waive off medical bills. The hospitals, including those registered under the Charity Commission, have now approached the Charity Commission and local police, demanding action and protection.
According to a formal complaint filed by one such hospital with the Pune Charity Commissioner’s office on February 25, two individuals were found defrauding patients by posing as intermediaries who could “manage” hospital bills under the Indigent Patient Fund (IPF). The hospital stated that these men would take money from poor patients or their families, promising to reduce or waive off medical bills, and then pressure hospital authorities to do so.
“This has become a chronic problem in Pune not just for hospitals under the Charity Commission but also for other private hospitals,” said Dr. H. K. Sale, Chairperson of the Association of Hospitals.
The hospital, which also lodged an FIR against the accused duo, reported that the two would misguide indigent patients, seek bribes from their families, and interfere in hospital operations, at times even bringing mobs and using abusive language to intimidate staff.
What is the Indigent Patient Fund (IPF)?
The IPF is a charity-driven initiative regulated by the Charity Commission that requires charitable hospitals to credit 2% of their gross billing (excluding bills of indigent patients) to a separate fund used to support free or subsidized treatment for patients who cannot afford care.
Authorities Respond
Rajni Kshirsagar, Joint Commissioner at the Charity Commission, cautioned patients and families:
“Patients or their relatives should not trust agents approaching them with promises of financial help. Certified social workers are deployed in all hospitals and are the only authorized personnel to guide patients about charity schemes.”
A senior official from the Commission also confirmed receiving similar complaints from multiple tertiary care hospitals across the city:
“Our scope is limited to informing the local police, but the matter needs urgent legal action to deter such practices.”
Hospitals have refrained from issuing official public statements, citing the ongoing investigations and the sensitive nature of the issue. However, hospital administrators and doctors have emphasized that this menace has created a hostile and unsafe work environment and risks exploiting vulnerable patients.
The Association of Hospitals has repeatedly urged authorities to initiate strong action against such impersonators, and also requested that public awareness be raised so that patients and their families do not fall prey to such fraudulent agents.
