KATHMANDU, Aug 3: The Ministry of Health and Food Safety has published the details of hospitals across the country and designated contact persons as part of a renewed effort to strictly enforce the mandatory provision requiring hospitals to provide 10 percent of their beds free of charge to eligible patients.
The ministry on Monday released a nationwide list of federal, provincial, community, teaching and private hospitals, saying the move aims to ensure patients can access free treatment and receive immediate assistance if they face difficulties.
The published list includes the name and telephone number of a focal person assigned at each hospital, allowing patients and their families to directly contact the responsible official regarding the availability of free treatment and related services.
10-bed hospital under construction in Myagde
The ministry said it has stepped up monitoring and coordination to ensure that the 10 percent free health service mandated under existing operational guidelines is implemented in practice rather than remaining a policy on paper.
The move comes amid repeated public complaints that some private hospitals have either failed to allocate the required number of free beds or have not adequately informed eligible patients about the service. The government has, in recent months, increased oversight of hospitals to improve compliance with the provision.
Earlier, the ministry launched an online portal to manage the free-bed system and has already required hospitals to regularly update the status of their reserved beds. The portal is intended to improve transparency and enable authorities to monitor compliance in real time.
The ministry has urged members of the public to use the newly published contact information to seek information about free treatment, lodge complaints if they are denied services, and coordinate directly with hospitals to access the facilities guaranteed under the policy.
