In the wake of an unprecedented public health emergency crisis as both public and private hospitals in the city are swamped with huge numbers of coronavirus patients, Maharastra government on Wednesday took a shocking decision which further triggered criticism. Issuing a notification to all the private doctors in Mumbai, Uddhav Thackeray-led state government ordered asked them to report to hospitals at COVID-19 patients.
With Mumbai witnessing 400 cases daily on average despite the lockdown, the administration has asked private doctors who are below 55 yrs of age and those with co-morbidities like diabetes, hypertension, other heart ailments to report with immediate effect to COVID-19 dedicated hospitals for treatment of patients. This order will be applicable for registered medical practitioners in Mumbai and suburban districts.
In the line of the orders issued, over 25,000 registered medical practitioners in Mumbai ought to report to the duties and render services for 15 days. Those failing to report to the assigned hospital will face action, including revocation of the license to practice. The government has invoked the Epidemic Diseases Act, Disaster Management Act, and Maharashtra Essential Services Maintenance Act to issue the above-mentioned order.
