Doctors support differential pricing for next-gen stents

The government had asked top cardiologists to submit a pricing plan for stents

In the midst of a tussle in the medical devices sector, cardiologists from leading hospitals and some medical associations have backed "next generation" stents, calling them superior, and have said that these deserve preferential pricing.

The government had asked top cardiologists, including those from the Cardiologist Society of India, to submit a pricing plan for stents. Industry recommendations are yet to be formally submitted to the government, it is learnt.

A member of the association told Business Standard that as doctors they would like to provide patients with a choice that would be possible only if prices are flexible. The pricing metric should be based on the follow-up period of a stent, material used to manufacture the drug eluting stent (bio-absorbable polymer or non-absorbable) and a stent's standing among the global fraternity of cardiologists.

One of the doctors this newspaper spoke to recommended higher prices for US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA)-approved stents versus the rest. He said US FDA approval was a tedious process and stents that pass that should get higher points.

In the meeting held on August 23 between the Department of Pharmaceutical, drug regulators and the industry, domestic manufacturers had contested differential pricing.

The Medical Technology Association of India (MTA), which set up to lobby for both multinationals and Indian device manufacturers, said MNCs should get their due as next-gen stents were superior. Director-general of MTA, Pavan Choudary, said while the technology came from multinationals, domestic manufactures could benefit by taking forward that technology. Choudary said the friction between domestic manufacturers and multinationals on pricing is good for the sector. Choudary added that the government's report on stent price capping should have considered the flexibility and efficiency of stents.

Tejas Patel, a doctor serving in public as well as private hospitals in Gujarat, said fair prices would ensure that patients get the best stent. Patel said in Gujarat, government hospitals have less efficient stents compared to those available in private hospitals.

M S Hiremath, president-elect of the Cardiologist Society of India, too said there needs to be differential pricing for next-gen stents.

The government initiated the process of capping stent prices after it was added to the National List of Essential Medicines.