Home / Health / Tax Hike Halts Surgeries: Patients Pay More in Lower Dir
Tax Hike Halts Surgeries: Patients Pay More in Lower Dir
14 Sep
Summary
- Surgical services under Sehat Sahulat Programme disrupted due to new taxes.
- Daily surgeries dropped from 200 to 20, burdening patients with private costs.
- Doctors cite reduced earnings from new 29% tax burden on procedures.
Provision of surgical services under the Sehat Sahulat Programme (SSP) has been significantly curtailed in Lower Dir, impacting thousands of residents reliant on the health card scheme. Since September 1, daily surgeries under the SSP have drastically fallen from approximately 200 to about 20, with private procedures now the only option for many.
This disruption stems from new taxes imposed in the Malakand division, totaling a 29% burden (15% withholding tax and 14% service tax). Medical practitioners argue that these taxes, applied to the SSP's package rates, substantially diminish their income, as 40% of the package is allocated to doctors.
Health officials noted that SSP compensation rates were already insufficient to cover operational costs, including medicines and equipment. Private hospitals, despite facing rising costs and heavy taxation, continue to provide services. However, doctors' non-cooperation on SSP procedures is now impacting healthcare access for vulnerable populations.
Residents are questioning why SSP services remain uninterrupted in other Khyber Pakhtunkhwa districts. They emphasize that financial disputes should not impede poor patients' access to free medical treatment. Local authorities are urged to address taxation, hospital expenditure, and doctor remuneration issues to fully reinstate SSP surgical services.
