The Maharashtra health department is set to implement a long-overlooked provision of the Bombay Nursing Homes Registration Act, 1949, ensuring private hospitals and nursing homes can no longer demand full payment of due bill amounts at discharge. The move aims to strengthen patient rights, improve transparency and prevent financial exploitation in healthcare facilities across the state.
Speaking to The Indian Express, state Health Minister Prakash Abitkar underscored the urgent need to enforce the Act, which regulates private hospitals, nursing homes and maternity centres in Maharashtra. The legislation mandates registration, licensing and adherence to minimum healthcare standards, ensuring patient safety, preventing malpractice and promoting accountability in the sector.
“Despite the Act being in place for years, compliance has been weak, with many private hospitals operating without strict adherence to its provisions,” he said.
To address these lapses, the government is prioritising the enforcement of two major rules. Firstly, hospitals will no longer be allowed to detain patients over pending bills at the time of discharge. Secondly, in cases where a patient dies, hospitals will be prohibited from withholding the body over unpaid dues. “Hospitals often refuse to discharge patients due to outstanding payments, violating both patient and human rights. The same applies to deceased patients—we will implement these rules immediately,” he said.
The Act also mandates that all registered private hospitals and nursing homes meet essential infrastructure and staffing standards while maintaining strict hygiene, fire safety, and biomedical waste disposal norms. However, compliance remains inconsistent. “We lack data on the actual implementation of these regulations. Right now, we are compiling this information and will ensure stricter enforcement, particularly in fire safety norms,” he added.
In the past month alone, over 3,000 private hospitals and nursing homes were found violating some provisions of the Act, prompting the government to take corrective measures. Alongside these reforms, all private hospitals will now be required to display the cost of medical procedures prominently within their premises. “Patients have the right to know treatment costs in advance. They should be able to compare prices before deciding on hospital admission,” the minister said.
While the state government is pushing to strengthen the Bombay Nursing Homes Registration Act, many experts argue Maharashtra should also adopt the Centre’s Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010 (CEA), which offers broader regulatory oversight. The CEA establishes uniform standards for medical facilities across India, addressing licensing, pricing, and service quality. In fact, a recent Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report criticised Maharashtra for failing to implement this legislation, which could help curb unethical practices in private healthcare.
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Despite the broader coverage of the CEA, health activists stress the importance of enforcing the Bombay Nursing Homes Registration Act, particularly for smaller nursing homes with only a few beds. These facilities, often criticised for employing unqualified medical personnel and overcharging patients, remain largely unregulated.
Dr Abhay Shukla, co-convenor of Jan Swasthya Abhiyan (JSA), highlighted that despite its limitations, the Bombay Nursing Homes Registration Act offers essential protections for patients. “The Act mandates that hospitals display indicative rates for treatments, ensuring transparency in medical billing. It also requires a toll-free grievance redressal mechanism for patients to report issues. However, these provisions remain largely unenforced, leaving patients vulnerable to overcharging and lack of accountability,” he said.
Under the Act, penalty for non-registration states that any violation of Section 3 shall, upon conviction, be punishable with imprisonment of up to six months, a fine of up to Rs 10,000, or both.