DENPASAR ~ Sanglah Hospital officials said the island’s main medical facility has lost up to Rp800 million (US$71,000) because of patients who run before paying their bills.

Chief of Emergency Treatment at the hospital Kuning Atmadjaya said most of the runaway patients had been treated in his department.

“We have seven to eight patients run away every week,” he said.

He said the department was working on a strategy to stop the problem, and planned to move the payment desk into the emergency treatment ward.

“We will make people pay their bills right after we have treated them,” he said.

Atmadjaya said if a patient was not able to pay for their treatment, they could ask for government assistance.