Bengaluru, July 05: Minister for Medical Education Dr K Sudhakar has warned of booking criminal cases against private hospitals who refuse treatment to Corona patients.
He addressed a press conference at the Vidhana Soudha on Sunday, after paying surprise visits to the Jayanagar government hospital and the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases.
Dr Sudhakar said that the administrative boards of hospitals were warned not to refuse treatment to any patient. “We are facing a medical emergency and cannot afford to compromise with regard to providing treatment,” he said and added that people could call on helpline number 1912 in case they face problems at hospitals in admission, getting tested, receiving test reports, and even being treated.
Since the number of cases has increased in the city in the last 10 days, people are worried, but the situation is expected to get better on Monday, said the minister.
“The required number of ambulances is being provided in the city, with a separate nodal officer. Every ward will get two ambulances in addition to those under the 108 health service,” he said and added that people could still call the helpline no 108 in case of need.
When asked about the charges for Corona tests, the minister admitted that there were media reports that people are being charged Rs 4,000 to Rs 4,500 to get a Corona test conducted. “The government, however, is getting the tests done for free on people suspecting to be infected. As many six lakh people have been tested so far, but no money has been collected at all. The private centres too have the rates fixed at Rs 2,200 for each test. Action will be taken against those who charge the patients higher,” he warned.
Speaking of the bed facilities in the hospitals, the minister said that the government medical college hospitals for Corona treatment have 152 of the 819 beds empty. The private medical college hospitals have 779 of the 1,899 beds empty. The government hospitals have 105 of the 611 beds empty. Private hospitals too have beds empty, but only 116 of the 2,734 beds have been provided to the government for Corona treatment, he added.
Dr Sudhakar said that the government has held discussions with the administrative boards of the private hospitals to hand over the promised number of beds to the government as early as possible. The chief minister has appointed Revenue Minister R Ashok and the chief minister's political secretary Vishwanath to oversee the work, which will begin on Monday.
The confusion regarding distribution of the beds will be cleared in a couple of days, he added.
“The younger people should ensure the senior citizens do not get infected by going out of home. Senior citizens who suffer from multiple health problems and with symptoms of influenza-like illness should compulsorily be made to undergo Corona tests,” said Dr Sudhakar, adding that the matter of legal action against letting senior citizens out of their homes is being discussed with medical experts.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
