When a doctor (whether family doctor / general physician, consultant or surgeon) prescribes tests – pathology, radiology, X-rays, MRIs etc. – the lab doing those tests gives commissions. How much? That depends your city and your neighbourhood. (For instance, In South and Central Mumbai — 40%; in suburbs north of Bandra — a whopping 60 per cent). Doctors earn a lot more in this way than by way of consulting fees that you pay them. When your friendly GP refers you to a specialist or surgeon, its not necessarily because your ailment calls for it. It may simply be because he gets 30-40% from the first-time consulting fee that you pay the specialist -- which is typically higher than the usual fee. If the GP or consultant recommends hospitalization, he will receive kickback from the private nursing home as a percentage of all charges including ICU, bed, nursing care, surgery etc. Shocked? Dont be. Private medical practice, and indeed, all private sector is full of malpractices and corruption.
Posted on: Thu, 17 Jul 2014 14:50:19 +0000
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