A few private hospitals in Kathmandu including HAMS, Grande, Vayodha, Megha, among other hospitals have started admitting and treating symptomatic coronavirus patients in isolation wards.

While COVID-19 patients admitted at HAMS Hospital and Grande Hospital will have to bear the expenses for their treatment on their own, treatment expenses at Vayodha and Megha hospitals will be borne by the government, informed Deputy spokesperson for Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP), Sameer Kumar Adhikari.

Earlier, private hospitals used to send coronavirus patients to the isolation wards of government hospitals. Now, MoHP has mandated that private hospitals should allocate 20 percent of their beds for the treatment of coronavirus patients.

Kathmandu Medical College has been treating coronavirus patients from the very beginning at the government’s expense. Nepal Medical College has also informed that they will start treatment of COVID-19 infected persons at the hospital.

The government has pledged to provide private hospitals up to Rs 3,500 daily for the treatment of coronavirus patients with general symptom, Rs 5,000 for the treatment of patients with moderate symptoms, Rs 7,000 for the treatment of patients with severe symptoms and up to Rs 15,000 for the treatment of patients with critical condition.

According to MoHP, a total of 1,026 infected people are being treated at different hospitals and isolation centers around the Kathmandu valley including Kavre-based Dhulikhel Hospital and Shir Memorial Hospital.

As many as 60 coronavirus patients are admitted in ICUs while ventilators are being used by 11 patients. The highest number of COVID-19 infected people being treated at a single hospital is 212, at the Nepal Police Hospital.