In accordance with the Indian Medical (Professional Conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulations, 2002, Punjab Medical Council has asked all doctors, institutions and hospitals to display the rate list for various treatments.

“PMC president Dr G S Grewal and registrar Dr Manjit Kaur Mohi recently issued a press release advising all registered medical practitioners, institutions and organisations to implement the statutory regulations in letter and spirit.”

The guidelines for regulations clarify the following:

• A physician should announce his fees before rendering service and not after the operation or treatment was underway.
• A physician must clearly display the fees and other charges on the board of his chamber and the hospital and/or provide a computerised receipt of every payment made.
• All charges, including consultation fees, medical devices rates like stent, orthopaedic implants and other implanted devices, operative fees, laboratory investigation rates, radiology investigation rates, ward expenditure for indoor patients as well as any other performed medical or surgical procedure should be displayed in a transparent and explicit manner for the benefit of the patients and general public and/or a computerised receipt given for every payment.
• A physician must not give, solicit or receive nor offer to give solicit or receive any gift, gratuity, commission or bonus in consideration of or in return for the referring, recommending or procuring of any patient for medical, surgical or other treatment.

Any violation will constitute professional misconduct liable for disciplinary action as deemed in law, including, but not limited to, the removal of the name of the registered medical practitioner from the Medical Register, altogether or for a specified period.

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