Several citizens are complaining about rising treatment costs at government hospitals under Taliban control. According to them, many services at government hospitals have recently begun to be provided for a fee, with little difference in cost compared to private hospitals. They told the Hasht-e Subh Daily that despite the absence of any health insurance, free services at government hospitals used to be the only option for many citizens, but now people are on the verge of being deprived of even these services.
Omar (pseudonym), a resident of Kabul, complains about the rising cost of treatment at government hospitals. He says that recently, many services at government hospitals under Taliban control are also being provided for a fee, with little difference from private hospitals.
This Kabul resident says: “In the past, government hospitals at least reduced part of people’s economic problems by offering some services free of charge. Some examinations were done for free, doctors’ fees were not charged, and some medicine was also given to patients free of charge. But now, services are provided for a fee.”
According to him, given people’s difficult economic conditions and the rise in various illnesses across the country, paying for treatment is difficult and burdensome for many citizens.
Omar adds: “For a citizen who pays taxes under any circumstances, health insurance is one of the basic rights. But unfortunately, no such insurance exists in Afghanistan. The only free services people used were at government hospitals, and now people are on the verge of being deprived of these services as well.”
Jalal (pseudonym), a resident of Nangarhar who has suffered a leg injury, says the cost of his visits and treatment at a government hospital has ended up higher than what he would have paid at a private hospital. He says that if he had gone to a private hospital instead of a government one, his treatment would have at least progressed and his problem would have been resolved by now.
This patient says: “My leg was injured while I was working. I came from Nangarhar to Sheikh Zayed Hospital for treatment. I can barely walk with my injured leg, but they still keep sending me back and forth. They did one round of examinations, and I had it done at a private clinic in Karte Parwan. They did not tell me the result, so I had another round of examinations done at a different private clinic.”
Jalal adds: “All my money has been spent on examinations, transportation, and the room we rented, but the problem with my leg still has not been resolved. I moan in pain all night until morning; I cannot sleep, and enduring this pain has become very hard for me. When I tell the doctors at Sheikh Zayed, they say, ‘Be patient; there is no other solution.’ It has been a week, and nothing has been done about my problem.”
Rishad (pseudonym), whose father underwent surgery at a government hospital, says he chose the government hospital because he could not afford a private one, but the treatment costs there were not much different from those at private hospitals. He says: “As soon as we entered the hospital, they even charged us for stationery. After the surgery, they took another thousand afghanis. We bought all the medicine, even the gloves, from outside.”
This man says that most of his father’s examinations were done outside the hospital. He adds that about a month after the surgery, his father was still experiencing severe pain in the area where the surgery was performed.
Rishad says: “When we went to the hospital itself, they said it would heal. In the end, we had more examinations done. It turned out that a piece of gauze had been left inside the wound. The wound had been stitched shut, and the entire area had become infected.”
Meanwhile, Zalmai (pseudonym), a specialist at one of the government hospitals, says that due to budget shortages for procuring medicine, equipment and consumables, part of the treatment costs is passed on to patients. According to him, as a result of the lack of budget and facilities, patients at government hospitals are, in practice, forced to pay for certain examinations, tests, medicine and other services. He adds that this situation has several causes.
Zalmai says: “A shortage of government budget and facilities is one of the main factors. In many cases, there is not enough medicine available, and the patient is forced to obtain it from outside. On the other hand, some tests, imaging, and specialized services are also not sufficiently available at government hospitals due to a lack of facilities, and the patient has no choice but to pay for them.”
This specialist adds that in some cases, patients face demands for informal payments in order to receive services more quickly or gain access to needed facilities. According to him, these cases mostly stem from weak management and oversight and should not be regarded as part of the legitimate cost of treatment at government hospitals.
Ahmad (pseudonym), another doctor at one of the government hospitals, says that due to shortages of certain medicines and diagnostic facilities at government hospitals, patients sometimes have to cover part of their treatment needs out of pocket. However, he says, the overall cost of treatment at government hospitals is still far lower than at private hospitals.
This doctor says: “For example, the cost of a ten-day hospital stay at a government hospital might be around 30,000 afghanis, while at a private hospital, calculating the daily hospitalization fee and other services, this figure can reach more than 150,000 afghanis. So the issue is not only about cost. Rather, the shortage of medicine and equipment at government hospitals must be addressed so that patients are not forced to pay out of pocket for basic treatment needs.”
This comes as several residents of Kabul city have complained of improper and unprofessional treatment by doctors and health workers at some government hospitals, saying that in some cases, doctors and health workers do not provide the necessary care to patients or their families until they receive a “sweetener” payment. According to them, this situation has, in some cases, created problems in the treatment process for patients and raised concerns about their health.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
بیماران: هزینه درمان در شفاخانههای دولتی تفاوت چندانی با مراکز خصوصی ندارد
