The state government on Saturday authorised 518 private hospitals and medical colleges in Karnataka empanelled under Ayushman Bharat-Arogya Karnataka (AB-ArK) to treat Covid-19 patients henceforth. Of these, 44 facilities are in Bengaluru.
The list of hospitals has been published in the Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust portal. The circular comes after the state saw a surge in cases and low number of beds in ICUs, especially those with oxygen and ventilators. There have also been complaints about lack of facilities and infrastructure in government Covid-19-designated hospitals.
The government also authorised two stadiums and one ashram in Bengaluru to function as Covid Care Centres to treat asymptomatic patients: Sri Sri Sri Ravishankar Ashram on Kanakapura Road, Kanteerava Indoor Stadium in SR Nagar, and Koramangala Indoor Stadium.