Private hospitals default blood money

Nadira Gunatilleke

The Healthcare and Nutrition Ministry has discovered that a large amount of money is due from private hospitals to the National Blood Transfusion Service (NBTS) for the services provided during the past.

NBTS provides blood to private hospitals free and private hospitals have to pay only Rs.350 per blood pint for blood transfusion kit and screening, Healthcare and Nutrition Ministry sources said.

The sources said although the private hospitals receive blood free from the NBTS, they sell blood to their patients at around Rs.50,000 per pint. Private hospitals earn a large amount of money selling blood to the patients alone but they had failed to pay Rs.350/- to the NBTS for blood they received free.

Healthcare and Nutrition Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva has called a review meeting and ordered for a full report on the issue.

The Director of the Private Hospitals Administration Unit, Dr. Dhammika Jayalath has made arrangements to coordinate all private hospitals with the Ministry through their representatives and solve the issue soon.

All private hospitals have agreed to pay outstanding payments to the NBTS for the blood transfusion kits they used and for screening blood they received free.