Doctor charges 10 times the price of vaccine, says nothing wrong in it as 5-star hotels also charge more than regular joints
Doctor charges 10 times the price of vaccine, says nothing wrong in it as 5-star hotels also charge more than regular joints
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| illustartion/ Satish Acharya |
Au00a0doctor from Sinhagad Road charged three members of a family almost 10 times the price of the swine flu vaccine, and the reason she gave for the high charges was the "quality service" rendered by her before and while administering the doses. On top of that, the doctor also squeezed out the last drop of juice from a five-dose vaccine vial by giving six doses from it.
The doctor charged Rs 1,400 per person, while the cost of the vaccine is Rs 150 per dose.
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The doctor justified the charges saying she had taken the risk of testing the vaccine on herself and even argued that giving six doses from a five-dose vial was all right (see 'The other side' box).
A copy of the payment receipt given by the clinic to the affected Kokane family is with MiD DAY.
Deepak Kokane, a resident of Manikbaug, Sinhagad Road, said his wife and two children recently went to their paediatrician for H1N1 preventive vaccination.
"The doctor told us the vaccine was available in a five-dose vial and she would give it to my family after she had found two or three other people who wanted to take the vaccine," said Kokane. "On July 25, she called my wife Rupali, son Aditya and daughter Khushi to the clinic for vaccination."
He said that besides his wife and two children, the doctor gave the vaccine from the vial to another woman and her two children.
Held hostage"Firstly, how did six people get vaccinated from a five-dose vial?" said Kokane. "After the vaccination, she told my wife the charges were Rs 1,400 per person."
Kokane said his wife was taken aback by the high charges, but was even more surprised by what followed ufffd the doctor virtually held her hostage when she said she did not have enough money on her at that moment.
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"My wife had just Rs 1,500 on her as we knew the cost of the vaccine to be Rs 150 per dose and that all other clinics were giving it for Rs 250," said Kokane. "The doctor did not allow my family to leave the clinic until the money she was asking for was brought to her. This, despite the fact that my family has been going to the clinic for many years."
