Hospitals Fail to Utilize Free Beds Despite Mandate
Summary
More than half of the mandatory free hospital beds for poor, helpless, and abandoned patients remain unused in Nepal, despite the launch of an online Free Health Portal and repeated ministry instructions. The Ministry of Health has reminded hospitals to update bed availability in real time and display complaint details at entrances.
Key Points
- Out of 3,609 allocated free beds across hospitals, only 968 are currently in use while 2,641 remain vacant.
- The Free Health Portal was launched last Asar to improve access, transparency, and free treatment for vulnerable patients.
- Government, private, and community hospitals have been instructed to update free-bed and treatment details in real time on the portal.
- The Ministry of Health has reminded hospitals to comply with legal requirements under the Health Institution Operation Standards, 2077.
