1 hr ago
Maharashtra FDA Seeks Transparency After Survey Finds Huge Device Markups
A survey in Maharashtra looked at the prices of some medical devices.
It found that hospitals or patients sometimes pay much more than the purchase price.
One IV set cost Rs 11.05 to buy but had an MRP of Rs 325.
This was described as a markup of 2,841 percent.
A syringe and a nebuliser mask kit also had large price differences.
FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe said such margins were not acceptable.
He asked the national pricing authority to examine the issue.
He said companies should earn profits, but pricing must be fair and transparent.
A Maharashtra FDA survey found medical-device markups of up to 29 times procurement costs.
A Medifusion IV set bought for Rs 11.05 had an MRP of Rs 325, representing a 2,841% markup.
FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe called a 2,800% trade margin unacceptable and sought regulatory intervention.
The survey also identified large price differences for syringes and adult nebuliser mask kits.
Mundhe said pricing should ensure fair, transparent and ethical profits while allowing manufacturers to operate businesses.
- Who
- Tukaram Mundhe, Maharashtra FDA Commissioner, and the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority are involved.
- What
- A Maharashtra survey found markups of up to 29 times on several medical devices, prompting a request for pricing intervention.
- Where
- The survey covered medical devices sold in Maharashtra’s retail and trade markets, including inpatient-department products.
- When
- The survey findings and Mundhe’s appeal were reported in an exclusive interview published today; the article does not specify a calendar date.
- Why
- Mundhe said exceptionally high and opaque margins require review to establish fair, transparent and ethical pricing.
Key facts
- Survey body
- Maharashtra State Price Monitoring Resource Unit under the state FDA
- Products examined
- IV sets, syringes, nebuliser oxygen masks and miscellaneous medical devices
- Largest reported markup
- Up to 29 times the procurement cost
- Medifusion IV set
- Purchase price Rs 11.05; MRP Rs 325; reported markup 2,841%
- Lyvofusion
- Reported margin of 2,091%
- Lifelong Meditech syringe
- A standard 10 ml syringe was sold for Rs 57.20 against a purchase price of Rs 6.75
- Vinjoh Healthcare mask kit
- An adult nebuliser mask kit priced at Rs 45 was sold to patients for Rs 652
Quotes
Tukaram Mundhe
Maharashtra FDA Commissioner
“Basically there has to be a fair trade, fair margin of profit. But it cannot be opaque. It cannot be unacceptable to the consumers, to the regulators and of course it cannot be acceptable to the manufacturers as well. Because they have to run business. They have to have profit. But it has to be fair, transparent and ethical”
NDTV
“A trade margin of 2800 per cent is by any terms not acceptable, either as a consumer or as a hospital or as a regulator”
NDTV
Sources
Related news
Maharashtra FDA Seeks Price Caps on Hospital Devices
Maharashtra FDA Flags Huge Markups on Hospital Consumables
Maharashtra official flags steep medical-device markups, seeks pricing oversight
Medical Device Industry Seeks Overhaul of Pricing Rules
Parliament Panel Urges Deadline For Medicine Trade Margin Caps
Hospital Markups Raise Concerns Over Medical Billing in India
Mumbai Police Seek Jarange Clarification Over Proposed Maratha Quota Protest
Hyderabad's September 17 Remains Divided Among Liberation, Police Action, Integration
Maharashtra Forms SIT To Probe Kalyan Government Land Transfers
NITI Aayog Urges States to Rethink EV Subsidies
