Sri Lanka’s Health Minister says people seeking treatment at government hospitals have increased by 40%

The number of people seeking medical treatment at government hospitals in Sri Lanka has increased exponentially, Minister of Health Keheliya Rambukwella said.

Speaking in the Parliament of Sri Lanka this morning (October 04), Health Minister Rambukwella said the number of people seeking treatment at the Out Patient Department (OPD) of the Colombo National Hospital has increased by 49.1 percent in the past nine months.

The number of patients seeking treatment at the OPD of the Kandy National Hospital has also increased by 6.6 per cent.

The Health Minister noted accordingly, a 40 percent overall increase has been recorded in people seeking treatment at OPDs of government hospitals and the number of people seeking in-house treatment at government hospitals has also increased by 27 percent this year.

Since most people cannot afford the increased costs at private hospitals, people are seeking treatment from government hospitals at present, Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said.