In a scathing article, Chinglen Maisnam delved into the exorbitant rates at which some private hospitals are allegedly charging for COVID treatment and the plight of the common people.
TFM Desk
Indian Medical Association, Manipur State Branch condemned in “strongest term” an article written by Chinglen Maisnam of Manipur University published in Poknapham, a local daily on May 26, 2021.
While doctors, nurses and other healthcare providers of the state are fighting the present pandemic risking their own lives, publishing such a “derogatory article” is uncalled for and it will definitely dampened the morale of the frontline workers at this critical juncture, stated a release by IMA, Manipur State Branch on Wednesday.
The comparison of chargeable rates for RT-PCR tests in Manipur with that of other states is also missleading as RT-PCR tests are done free of cost at government hospitals like RIMS and JNIMS while the chargeable rates for the same test at private hospitals are fixed by the state government, it contended.
A sum of Rs 1,400 capped for private labs or hospitals in Manipur is much less as compared to private labs or hospitals in neighboring states like Meghalaya, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh, it added.
The release further asserted that the illustration which was published along with the article – representing a doctor and nurse squeezing patients to mint money is “very callous, childish and unbecoming” of his stature.
“This is not the time to ridicule one another but to join hands together and fight this pandemic”.
IMA also warned that Chinglen should tender an “unconditional apology” to the doctor and nursing community failing which appropriate legal action will be taken.
The association also appealed to the media community to refrain from publishing such a “biased and unsubstantial article” without proper verification.
In a scathing article, Chinglen Maisnam delved into the exorbitant rates at which some private hospitals are allegedly charging for COVID treatment and the plight of the common men. The associate professor of the Department of Economics of Manipur University is a regular columnist of the local daily.
In his article, Chinglen also presented a chart which showed the rates of RT-PCR testing in different states — Rs 1200+ for Manipur, Rs 500 each for Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Kerala, Assam and Rs 400 for Orissa.