The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission-2, Hyderabad, has held a private hospital and a treating doctor liable for medical negligence and deficiency in service during the COVID-19 treatment of a lady patient, and directed them to jointly pay ₹40 lakh as compensation to her family. The case dates back to September 2020, during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the patient was admitted to the hospital with complaints of fever. She was treated for nearly 20 days and was subsequently discharged after being billed ₹13,27,069 for the treatment.
The complainants, who are the husband and son of the deceased, alleged that the patient received improper treatment from an unqualified doctor who was not authorised under the guidelines of the Indian Medical Association to manage such cases. The family further contended that the treating doctor administered a “Tocilizumab”…
