The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health has called for some parity between the healthcare establishments, units in the excise-free zones and outside the zones by extending tax exemptions to establishments in the remote and backward rural areas.

In a recent report after examining the Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Bill 2007, the panel headed by Amar Singh urged the Health Ministry to take up the matter with the Finance Ministry. It also called for a separate chapter on provisions for patients' rights and duties in healthcare establishments, as practiced in the developed countries.

"Committee notes that many tax exemptions are being provided to corporate and business entities that are setting up their business establishments under Special Economic Zones (SEZs). Similarly, in order to make health reach across the length and breadth of this vast country, motivation in the form of tax exemptions may be provided to healthcare establishments being opened in remote, backward and rural areas," the report said, based on its interactions with various stakeholders during the last one year while examining the bill.

The information acquired in the course of enforcing this Act may be privileged and confidential. Hence, in order to protect the interests of the patients and the establishments, a confidentiality clause needs to be incorporated in the Act. Any information which has been obtained from any hospital, medical clinic, clinical laboratory or healthcare establishment in the course of carrying out any investigation or performing any duty or function under this Act should not be disclosed unless required to do so in case of a prosecution for an offence under this Act or any regulations made there under, the panel suggested.

The committee had asked for rephrasing the original bill into `the Healthcare Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Bill, 2007 to expand the purview by bringing all kinds of healthcare institutions including the public, R&D and OPD service under the Act.