Amendments to private clinics bill introduced
In a bid to further regulate health care in the state, Health Minister C Vijaya Baskar introduced amendments to the Tamil Nadu Private Clinical Establishments (Regulation) Act 1997, which defines clinical establishments, its duties, responsibilities and maintenance of facilities besides providing for setting up of District Committees, State Level Advisory Committee, their compositions and roles.
By : migrator
Update: 2018-03-20 21:08 GMT
Chennai
The purview of the Act would encompass any clinical establishment under any recognised systems of medicine. “It includes any general hospital including dental, maternity hospital, dispensary, consulting room, clinic, polyclinic or nursing home. Any institution or a centre, by whatever name called where physically or mentally sick, injured, or infirm person is admitted either as in-patient or out-patient for treatment with or without the aid of operative procedures.
Any clinic catering to radiological, biological or other diagnostic or investigative services with the aid of laboratory or other medical equipment; established and administered or maintained by any person or body of persons, whether incorporated or not, or the state or central government or any department of state or centre, or a trust, whether public or private or a company, whether or not owned by the government or a local authority but does not include the clinical establishments controlled or managed by the Armed Forces,” Baskar said.
It mandates registration of all existing clinical establishments under this Act within nine months of notification of the amendment, and for the new establishments which are set up post notification had to apply for registration within six months period. While dropping the term ‘Private’ from the principal act, the amendment provides for cancellation of the registration of threetime defaulter under this legislation and would not be permitted to apply for fresh registration.
It mandates clinical establishments to administer first-aid and take other lifesaving or stabilising emergency measures in all medico-legal or potentially medico-legal cases such as road accidents, accidental or induced burns or poisoning or criminal assaults and the like when the victims present themselves at the clinical establishments.
Annual lists of clinical establishments registered would be published in the Tamil Nadu Government Gazette every January.
In the statement of objects and reasons, Baskar noted that the Tamil Nadu Private Clinical Establishment (Regulation) Act 1997 to regulate and control health care could not be implemented due to non-framing of rules.
Meanwhile, the Centre enacted Clinical Establishment (Registration and Regulation) Act 2010 and sent draft model state rules to Tamil Nadu for consideration and adoption.
Since the state had already enacted the Act, a Committee that was constituted to go into the Act submitted its recommendations. The state has subsequently decided to amend the said Act suitably to provide for registration and regulation of all clinical establishments in the state and to prescribe the minimum standards of facilities and services to be provided by them.
GOVERNMENT’S PRESCRIPTION
Here are some of the highlights of amendments to the Tamil Nadu Private Clinical Establishments (Regulation) Act 1997
- The purview of the Act will include all clinical establishments, except those controlled or managed by the Armed Forces.
- Registration of all existing clinical establishments a must under this Act.
- It has to be done within 9 months of notification of the amendment.
- New establishments must register within six months.
- Amendment provides for cancellation of the registration of three-time defaulter.
- Annual list of registered clinical establishments will be published in the Gazette every January.
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