Hospitals turning away COVID patients despite bed availability will face action: Kejriwal

Amid the spiralling COVID-19 crisis in Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday said 6,000 more beds will be added in the next three to four days and warned hospitals of strict action if they are found giving wrong information or turning away coronavirus patients despite the availability of beds.

He also asked the Centre to reserve 50 per cent of beds in central government hospitals in Delhi for COVID-19 patients.

Admitting that there was a shortage of oxygen and ICU beds, as well as medicines needed for serious COVID patients, the chief minister said new cases were coming up fast and there was a limit to the health infrastructure.

"The health infrastructure has its limits; due to rapidly increasing cases in Delhi, we are facing a shortage of oxygen, Remdesivir, and Tocilizumab," he said during an online media briefing.

He said his government has received complaints that some hospitals were denying beds to COVID-19 patients.

The Delhi government has an app that shows the number of occupied or vacant beds available at hospitals in real time. The hospitals update it showing if there was the availability of beds there, he said.

"If any hospital, showing the availability of beds on the app, is found to be denying patients or providing false information, strict action will be taken against them," he said.

The Delhi government is constantly working to augment the number of oxygen beds and ICU facilities amid the crisis, he said.

"In the next 3-4 days, the Delhi government will be adding 6,000 oxygen beds including 1,300 beds at the Yamuna Sports Complex and Commonwealth Games Complex, and 2,500 at Radha Soami Satsang, Beas premises," he said.

The assurance of the Delhi chief minister comes at a time when people are finding it difficult to admit patients in hospitals and taking to social media with cries of help.

Kejriwal said the COVID-19 situation in Delhi has become "very serious and worrisome" with the positivity rate escalating to 24 per cent.

In the last 24 hours, around 24,000 fresh cases of COVID-19 have been reported. Within a day, the number rose from 19,500 to 24,000. This shows how fast the cases are rising, he stated.

The Delhi government has come up with 2,100 oxygen beds by attaching banquet halls and hotels to the hospitals. The beds will be shown in the Delhi government app in a day or two, he said.