Bengaluru: Reflecting the rising health burden in Bengaluru and the gaps in public health infrastructure, the govt has decided to partner with four private medical colleges and hospitals to provide treatment under Ayushman Bharat–Arogya Karnataka (AB-ArK) scheme at govt-prescribed rates, without the need for referrals.Under this arrangement, patients can directly walk into these private hospitals and access medical procedures free of cost, just as they would at a govt facility.
The four hospitals included in the pilot programme, which will run for a year, are St John’s Hospital, Ramaiah Memorial Hospital, Kempegowda Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS) and Dr BR Ambedkar Medical College and Hospital. The decision, approved at a recent cabinet meeting chaired by CM Siddaramaiah, comes ahead of the city civic polls.“The pilot began in Bengaluru because we are facing a shortage of healthcare facilities here. As per Indian Public Health Standards norms, the city needs at least 3,000–4,000 additional govt hospital beds. While we work towards building this infrastructure, people must still access medical care, and Bengaluru has abundant private capacity,” explained Harsh Gupta, principal secretary, health department.Earlier, AB-ArK had two major restrictions: 291 procedures were reserved exclusively for govt hospitals, while another 1,200 procedures — such as appendectomies and hernia repairs — could be accessed in private hospitals only with a referral from a govt facility.“Both these restrictions have been relaxed for the four empanelled hospitals as they have necessary infrastructure and capabilities, making the care provided comparable to that in public healthcare institutions,” Gupta said. Patients will not be charged, and the govt will reimburse 75% of the prescribed AB-ArK rates.However, activists cautioned that the move may not significantly benefit the public due to private hospital package systems. “Studies show patients often incur out-of-pocket expenses in private hospitals despite govt schemes. OPD care is not covered, only surgeries are reimbursed, and hospitals may cherry-pick easier cases or order unnecessary tests,” said public health doctor and researcher Sylvia Karpagam.
