Andhra Pradesh

State fails on medicare front: Telugu Desam

Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD: Terming the Medical and Health Department in the State `sick', the Telugu Desam Party has said the Congress Government in the State has failed to provide basic medicare for the poor.

At a press conference here on Monday, the TDP leaders -- Kodela Sivaprasada Rao and S. Venugopala Chary -- referred to the Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy's announcement of Sunday, of the need for a new "Health Vision" and said the Congress Government was making "tall talk and new names" without planning for any improvements to the healthcare delivery systems in the State.

On the Chief Minister's suggestion that the service of private specialists could be used to perform complicated surgical procedures in Government hospitals, Dr. Rao said it would mark the beginning of the transformation of Government hospitals into corporate hospitals. "In the absence of any budgetary provisions, who will pay the private specialists for the surgeries ? And who will take the responsibility for any post-surgical complications," he asked.

Even after an outbreak of the dreaded dengue fever in districts like Khammam last year, the Government had not learnt its lesson, he said, and added that cases of dengue fever had been reported in the past few weeks in the same areas this year too. At least this time, will the Government take any concrete steps, he wondered.

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