IMPHAL, India, April 14 -- Manipur High Court issued the following order on March 12:
[1] Heard Mr. Seto T Kom, learned counsel along with Mr. Karung H. Kom, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr. Th. Sukumar, learned G.A. for the State respondent.
[2] The petitioner is the widow of deceased Government Employee namely Shri W. Thomas, who was serving as Grade-IV employe in the Primary Health Centre (PHC in short) of Jessami, Ukhrul, under the Medical Directorate, Manipur, Government of Manipur. As the deceased employee was sick for some time, he attended the Out Patient Dept. (OPD in short) of Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences & Hospital, Porompat, Imphal East (JNIMS) on 12.11.2018 and he was diagnosed of sickness as Chronic Liver Disease (CLD) for which the treating Doctor referred the deceased employee to the Higher Centre with facilities for (a) TACE (Transcatheter Arterial Chemoembolisation, where small embolic particles coated with Chemotherapeutic drugs are injected through Catheter), (b) RFA (Radiofrequency Ablation) in which radio waves are used to create a current heats in a small area of nerue tissues. The heat destroys that area of the nerue, stopping it from sending pain signals to the brain and (c) LDLT (Living Donor Liver Transplantation).
[3] As the above treatment facilities were not available in JNIMS, RIMS and other Govt. Hospitals of Manipur, the deceased employee was treated at a private hospital namely Sky Hospital & Research Centre, RIMS Road, Imphal West, since 29.11.2018 and discharged on 02.12.2018. In the second phase of treatment, the deceased employee was treated at Sky Hospital from 13.08.2019 and discharged on 16.08.2019. During these two phases of treatment, the deceased employee was given TACE treatment at Sky Hospital as advised by the treating Doctor of JNIMS. However, the Government employee succumbed to his illness on 30.11.2019.
[4] Thereafter, the medical reimbursement for the treatment was submitted to the State Authority through the Chief Medical Officer, Ukhrul to the Chairman of State Medical Board, Medical Directorate vide letter dated 12.09.2019 for a sum of Rs. 2,72,068/- for the first phase of treatment and for the second phase of treatment, a sum of Rs. 1,06,315/- was submitted through the Chief Medical Officer, Ukhrul vide letter dated 17.03.2021 to the Chairman of State Medical Board. In respect of first claim of medical reimbursement submitted on 12.09.2019, the same was rejected vide letter dated 18.01.2022 issued by the Directorate of Health Services, Manipur to the Chief Medical Officer, Ukhrul on the ground that Sky Hospital and Research Centre is not a Government empanelled hospital for the treatment of HCC and TACE for the treatment conducted with effect from 29.11.2018 to 02.12.2018 and vide another letter dated 18.01.2022, the Directorate of Health Services, Manipur informed the Chief Medical Officer about the rejection of medical reimbursement submitted on 17.03.2021 for the second phase of treatment conducted at Sky Hospital with effect from 13.08.2019 to 16.08.2019 for HCC and TACE as the same hospital is not empanelled by the Manipur Government.
*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/ecourtindiaHC/cases/display_pdf.php?filename=zDLovBVSUw02H8XukOjXfLPhF5MyCt8yiDbBPdqHvAzE8Fzp8Gq0Z6Fm5V8We1LB&caseno=WP(C)/898/2022&cCode=1&cino=MNHC010028242022&state_code=25&appFlag=)
Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.
