27-Year-Old Hepatitis Patient Moves High Court For Free Treatment

A patient with a rare type of hepatitis has approached Delhi High Court seeking free treatment at a specialized hospital. As per the petition filed in the HC, Hanuman (27), suffers from Hepatitis B Surface Antigen (HBsAg) and belongs to the economically weaker section (EWS). Hanuman is married and father of two young children. Due to the severe illness, Hanuman was forced to stop working and depends on others for sustenance of his family.

In Hanuman’s plea filed through advocate Ashok Aggarwal, the petitioner said following a lab test confirmed that Hanuman was suffering from severe strain of hepatitis. When his condition worsened, he approached Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital (RMLH) for treatment which in turn referred him to Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS) for further treatment and also recommended the check up of his entire family members.

When Hanuman's family approached ILBS for treatment last month, the Institute refused to provide free treatment to him and asked him to pay for the treatment. Despite producing a copy of his father's BPL card and several requests to provide free treatment ILBS hospital still requested him to pay for the treatment and declined to provide him free medical aid. Arguing that he has already applied for Aadhaar card and possesses a voter ID, the petitioner has claimed he is entitled to free treatment despite not having a BPL card.

Source-Medindia