Nadda says hike in import taxes not to affect drugs' price

ALAPPUZHA: Union minister of health and family welfare Jagat Prakash Nadda assured that there would not be any hike in drug prices due to increase in import taxes and he promised that medicines would be made available at cheaper rates.
The minister was speaking after laying the foundation stone of the Rs 150-crore super specialty block for the Government Tirumala Devaswom (TD) Medical College. HLL Infra Tech services Ltd, a subsidiary of HLL Lifecare Ltd (HLL), will construct the 14,100 sqm block.
The minister said that some media wrongly reported that there would be hike in drug prices in India due to augment in import taxes. On the contrary, medicines are likely to become cheaper," he said. "Apart from generic drugs, medicines for cancer and cardiovascular surgical implants will also be available at 60 to 90 per cent subsidized rates."
Nadda also said that his government will allot All India Institute of Medical Science (AIMS) for Kerala. We are ready to give Regional Cancer Centre or special cancer treatment facility for Alappuzha and the state government should submit a detailed project report in this regard. The seats of medical colleges in the state will not be reduced and the practical side of the Medical Council of India's rules will be examined. The ministry is willing to provide assistance in setting up Amruth Centres in Kerala. But the state government should give us land for the scheme implementation," he added.
The new super specialty block of Alappuzha MCH will have 200 in-patient beds and 50 ICU beds. It will be equipped with air-conditioned operation theatres for cardiology, cardiothoracic surgery, neurology, neurosurgery, urology, nephrology, gastroenterology, plastic surgery and endocrinology.
This building is being constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY). The four-storeyed building with four lifts will have state of the art medical facilities, like X-Ray, CT scan, MRI, ultrasound scan and laboratories. The state government will contribute Rs 30 crore out of Rs 150 crore for the construction of the facility and it is expected to be completed in 18 months.

Union minister of health and family welfare J P Nadda speaking after laying the foundation stone for the super specialty block for Alappuzha Medical College. State health minister V S Sivakumar, MP K C Venugopal, MLA G Sudhakaran, CMD HLLDr M Ayyappan, PMSSY Joint SecretarySunil Sharma, medical education director A Ramla Biwi and Alappuzha Medical College pricipal Dr N Sreedevi are also seen.
The function was presided over by health minister V S Sivakumar. MP K C Venugopal,MLA G Sudhakaran, CMD, HLL Dr M Ayyappan, PMSSY joint secretary, Sunil Sharma, medical education director A Ramla Biwi and Alappuzha medical college principal Dr N Sreedevi also spoke.