Margalla Hospital Islamabad: 167-bed hospital to offer free treatment under Indus Hospital, PM to open it this week

Islamabad is getting a new 167-bed public hospital that will treat patients free of charge. The Margalla Hospital, which had been non-functional for several years, will be run by the Indus Hospital and Health Network (IHHN) under a philanthropic partnership, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is expected to inaugurate it this week, ProPakistani and ARY News reported on Saturday.

Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal chaired a meeting at the health ministry to review preparations. He said reviving the hospital would ease the load on Islamabad's big hospitals, and called the arrangement an example of "public service, transparency, and the effective use of national resources".

What the hospital will offer

• Free diagnostics: lab tests and imaging
• Free medical treatment for outpatients and admitted patients
• Free surgery
• 167 beds

It is meant for residents of Islamabad and the surrounding areas, the two reports said.

In ARY News's report, Kamal said that "the Epidemic Diseases Hospital, which remained non-functional for a long time, is now being made operational". Neither report says in so many words whether that is the same building, or gives its sector; we will add the exact location and opening date when the government announces them.

Why it matters

Indus Hospital and Health Network runs its hospitals on a free-of-charge model, so a working Margalla Hospital adds beds in the capital that patients do not pay for, and should take some of the pressure off Islamabad's existing public hospitals.

Until it opens

• Find other hospitals near you in our Islamabad hospitals directory and Rawalpindi hospitals directory.