Mumbai News LIVE Updates: Policyholders must remain at centre of insurance services, says health minister

Mumbai News LIVE Updates: Health Minister Abitkar urges insurers, hospitals to ensure patient welfare, warns of action against irregularities

Representatives from insurance firms, private hospitals, IRDAI, and the state health department discussed the possibility of evolving a standard operating framework to safeguard patient welfare. Abitkar noted that the number of people opting for health insurance is steadily increasing, and providing satisfactory services to policyholders is the responsibility of both hospitals and insurance companies. He warned that if irregularities are found, the government will initiate appropriate action.

Mumbai News LIVE Updates: `Patient must remain the central focus`  

Representatives from major insurance companies, including Reliance, Tata, SBI, Star Health, HDFC and AIG attended the meeting, along with representatives from leading hospitals such as Vockhardt, Lilavati, Jaslok and Reliance. “Even though insurance companies and hospitals operate on commercial lines, the patient must remain the central focus,” the minister said.

Mumbai News LIVE Updates: Claim delays, high hospital bills prompt govt to seek standard mechanism, says Prakash Abitkar

Abitkar said the government had received several complaints from policyholders regarding difficulties in obtaining claim approvals from insurance companies and the high medical bills charged by private hospitals. The meeting was convened to establish a standard mechanism to address these concerns and ensure smoother coordination between insurers and hospitals.

Mumbai News LIVE Updates: Policyholders must remain at the centre of services, Maharashtra Health Minister directs insurers

Maharashtra Health Minister Prakash Abitkar on Tuesday directed health insurance companies and hospitals to keep policyholders at the centre of their services, while assuring that the state government will examine complaints received from insured patients. He was speaking at a joint meeting held at Mantralaya in Mumbai with representatives of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), private insurance companies, and private hospitals to discuss issues related to delays in claim approvals and allegedly excessive medical billing by hospitals. Read more