Emergency measures

AFP reports:

An exclusive private Indian hospital faced closure Wednesday after it allegedly denied emergency treatment to a child who later died, sparking a mini riot.

Hundreds of protesters rampaged through the hospital in eastern Kolkata on Tuesday, causing 225,000 dollars of damage, after it was accused of turning away a seven-year-old girl who had suffered head injuries in a road accident.

The child’s family and bystanders said authorities at Peerless Hospital demanded 50,000 rupees (1,100 dollars) to admit the child — a vast sum for most people in impoverished India.

“If it’s proven that the injured were denied admission because they failed to deposit the required money, the government will cancel the licence of the hospital,” West Bengal state health minister Surya Kanta Mishrahe said.

All hospitals are required to admit patients requiring emergency treatment.

Ueeful piece of fact, that. One hears of cases where hospitals not only asked for money to be deposited before emergency treatment could be started but demanded that the payment be in cash.