Siddharth Dalmia vs Union Of India 2025 INSC 351 - PIL Against Exploitation By Private Hospitals
Constitution of India - Article 21 - The provision of medical facilities to one and all is an essential component of the right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution - PIL seeking direction to restrain private hospitals from compelling the patients to purchase medicines/ devices/ implants/ consumables from the hospital pharmacies only, where they allegedly charge exorbitant rates, as compared to the notified market prices of those items - They further seek a direction that the Union of India or the State Governments should formulate a policy to prevent this form of exploitation - Disposing PIL, SC observed -Such issues primarily involve policy decisions, for which the policy-makers are the best equipped to take a holistic view and formulate the guidelines as may be required, to safeguard the patients or their attendants from exploitation while simultaneously, ensuring that there is no discouragement and unreasonable restriction on private entities from entering the health sector.It may not be advisable for this Court to issue mandatory directions which may hamper the growth of hospitals in the private sector; but parallelly, it is necessary to sensitize the State Governments re: the problem of unreasonable charges and exploitation of patients in private hospitals- Directions issued to all the State Governments to consider this issue and take appropriate policy decisions as they may deem fit.
