Kerala: Max price set for coronary stents

KOCHI: The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) under Department of Pharmaceuticals, Government of Indian has finally fixed the ceiling prices of coronary stents after examining all information/data and all relevant options for price fixation. The ceiling prices were arrived at a meeting of NPPA held on Monday “in order to protect public interest in the light of a failed and exploitative market system” and has been published in an extraordinary gazette notification on the day itself. Under it, the bare metal stents will cost a maximum of Rs 7,260 while drug eluting/metallic drug eluting/bioreabsorbable/biodegradable stents will cost only Rs 29,600.

The notification was issued after the Centre brought coronary stents in the national list of essential medicines by a notification dated July 19, 2016. The prices now in force are exclusive of local tax applicable/VAT. The NPPA noted that “it was found that huge unethical markups are charged at each stage in the supply chain of coronary stents resulting in irrational, restrictive and exorbitant prices pushing patients to financial misery,” which forced it to fix the ceiling prices.

Hospitals performing cardiac procedures using coronary stents are required to comply with the ceiling prices. They should separately mention the cost of the stent along with its brand name, name of the manufacturer /importer/batch no and other details, if any, in their billing to the patients. The ceiling price is for a year and could only be revised by another gazette notification. Dr Mohanan K.S. , cardiologist with Calicut Government Medical College, said that the fixing of prices for metal and drug eluting stents was a welcome move.

“The drug eluting stents  can be made available by companies to hospitals at a price of Rs 15,000 to Rs 18,000. These are currently made available at government medical colleges in the range of 'Rs 35,000 to Rs 42,000. It seems the firms and hospitals can make a reasonable profit on bare metal stents at the ceiling price of Rs 7260,” Dr Mohanan said. However, he added that it is not fair to put a ceiling price on bioreabsorbable/biodegradable stents.

“They have arrived only recently and may be one company is giving the stent in the country by importing it. Fixing a ceiling price for it may prompt that company from making it available which will not augur well for the health care sector in the country,” he said. It was on January 12 last that the NPPA had made a draft price calculation for the coronary stents and circulated it among stakeholders for consultation before finally fixing the price on February 13. Hospitals currently charge patients from Rs 60,000 to Rs 1,60,000 depending on various brands of stents and charging 300% to 700% more from patients which prompted the Central Government to fix ceiling price.