Delhi government is planning to implement the Clinical Establishment Act that aims to keep a check on all medical service institutions and thereby curb corruption perpetuating in them. The Clinical Establishment Act, passed in 2010, provides for registration and regulation of all clinical establishments in the country with a view of prescribing the minimum standards of facilities and services provided by them. The Act is a step ahead of the existing laws, such as the Delhi Nursing Home Registration Act 1953, in the sense that it covers all recognized systems of medicine including homeopathy, unani and ayurveda and also provides for registration of all hospitals, nursing homes, day care centres, diagnostic labs and even clinics run by a single doctor. The Act also permits authorities to conduct inspections and penalize or cancel licenses of hospitals that are found to be cheating patients, either by prescribing needless tests and procedures, or overcharging. Once enacted it would standardize services and charges.

The Act has also received a fair share of criticism. Indian Medical Association (IMA) national president Dr. A Marthanda Pillai, addressed the media on 16th March, criticizing the Clinical Establishments Act for favouring the corporate hospitals. He said, “The government has turned a blind eye towards small and medium hospitals that majorly contribute in making healthcare accessible and affordable in rural areas. By laying out prescribed minimum standards of healthcare services, government is not recognizing the fact that many small and single-man run hospitals are delivering good care at cheaper rates. The current Act makes them financially unviable.”

Though the Act has been adopted by states like Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Sikkim and union territories, there were oppositions seen from doctors in Rajasthan who claimed to have no objection against the Act but only against some provisions. They demanded for a higher representation of medical professionals in the authority and to exclude the police.

Despite oppositions from the Indian Medical Association and the Delhi Medical Association, the Delhi health minister, Satyender Jain confirms the move to implement the Act to Times Of India. The IMA has also updated professional ethical codes for it’s members and feels that enacting of laws by states will add to the layer of regulations. A serious thought would make us think that Government should implement the existing laws and codes effectively, before trying to enact new ones.

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