Maharashtra FDA finds hospitals overcharging up to 29 times on IV sets, syringes
Maharashtra FDA survey finds hospitals selling IV sets, syringes and other medical devices at up to 29 times their cost price.
The cost of treatment is always a major worry for patients admitted to hospitals and their families. Often this cost is unaffordable for the common person, and there have been many instances of people losing their lives because of it. Now a shocking case has come to light in Maharashtra, where it has been revealed that patients are being charged extra for medical devices.
The Maharashtra State Price Monitoring Resource Unit (MSPMRU), which functions under the state Food and Drug Administration (FDA), conducted a detailed survey on this. The survey found out the actual price of devices sold in hospitals and the medical market. It showed a huge gap between the purchase price and the maximum retail price (MRP) of essential medical devices needed for hospital treatment. These devices are being sold at 19 to 29 times their original price.
A prominent example is the IV set. An IV set that companies get for just 11 rupees is sold to patients for as much as 325 rupees, a profit margin of more than 2800 percent. The situation is the same with syringes. A standard 10 ml syringe, which costs around 6.75 rupees to make, is sold in the market for up to 57.20 rupees.
A similar pattern was found with nebulizers and oxygen masks. Patients are being billed 652 to 715 rupees for a nebulizer mask kit that is available for 40 to 45 rupees. A catheter available for around 29 rupees is sold at 10 times its purchase price. This makes it clear that patients are literally being looted in many hospitals. This benefits profiteering companies while also filling the pockets of hospitals.
FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe has called this steep price increase completely irrational and unjust. He has written to the central government stating clearly that the original manufacturing cost of these devices already includes the companies' marketing, distribution and profit. Yet the prices of these devices in the market keep soaring.
To stop this serious problem, Mundhe has urged the central government's Department of Pharmaceuticals to take strict action immediately. He has demanded that these commonly used surgical and medical items be brought under the ambit of the Drugs (Prices Control) Order, 2013, so that a legal limit can be placed on their prices. He has also demanded administrative and legal intervention to stop arbitrary pricing and curb profiteering.
