“Morals Don’t Pay Bills”: Medical Fraternity Questions CM Revanth Reddy’s Appeal

During a recent hospital inauguration, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy made a passionate appeal: Private and NRI doctors should dedicate one month a year to working in government hospitals for free. It sounds like a noble headline. But on the ground, within the medical fraternity, it sparks a very different, frustrating question: Why is healthcare the only sector expected to run on charity?

Here is the reality of modern medicine that politicians conveniently ignore when appealing to a doctor’s “morals”:

Governments Have Crores, But Not for Doctors

We see state governments spend thousands of crores on election campaigns, full-page newspaper advertisements, VIP security fleets, and freebie schemes to secure vote banks. Yet, when it comes to staffing public hospitals and saving lives, the government suddenly runs out of funds and asks private doctors to do it out of “social responsibility.” If healthcare is a priority, why isn’t the government paying competitive salaries to attract top talent instead of begging for free labor?

Morals Don’t Pay the Bills

Society loves to call medicine a “noble profession” until it’s time to pay the bills. The harsh reality is that medical education is exorbitantly expensive. Many doctors spend their 20s and early 30s buried under massive educational loans, studying while their peers are building wealth. By the time a doctor sets up a private practice, they are drowning in overhead costs: clinic rent, staff salaries, equipment maintenance, and crippling taxes.

We cannot tell our bank manager, “I can’t pay my EMI this month because I was doing free service for the government.” Morals do not pay our bills.