New Delhi: The announcement made by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman regarding the exemption of customs duty on three cancer drugs and changes in basic customs duty on X-ray tubes and flat panel detectors are likely to have a positive impact on India’s health sector. “The government's decision to cut customs duties on Trastuzumab (For breast cancer), Osimertinib (For Non-small cell lung cancer), and Durvalumab (For non-small cell lung cancer and bladder cancer) from 10 per cent to nil is anticipated to significantly lower the cost of these critical cancer treatments,” said Dr Tamorish Kole, chair, of the Clinical Practice Committee, of the International Federation for Emergency Medicine (IFEM) while speaking to ETV Bharat.
In fact, this reduction is likely to make these drugs more affordable for patients, improving access to advanced therapies that are essential for treating specific types of cancer, he said. “By lowering the cost barrier, the decision aims to enhance patient outcomes and make high-quality care more accessible. Additionally, it may encourage further pharmaceutical innovation in the Indian market, contributing to overall improvements in cancer care,” Dr Kole said.
Referring to the changes in basic customs duty on X-ray tubes and flat panel detectors, Dr Kole said that this reduction will lower the overall cost of X-ray machines and related diagnostic technologies, making them more accessible to healthcare facilities, particularly in underserved areas.
“By reducing the cost of these critical components, healthcare providers will potentially enhance their diagnostic capabilities without the financial burden of high equipment costs. This will ensure last-mile availability of basic imaging facilities and strengthen our healthcare systems,” said Dr Kole.
These initiatives are part of the Centre’s comprehensive strategy to improve healthcare affordability and accessibility while also promoting local manufacturing and innovation in the health and medical sector. Finance Minister Sitharaman in her budget said that to provide relief to cancer patients, “three more medicines will be fully exempted from customs duty.” She also proposed changes in the basic customs duty on X-ray tubes and flat panel detectors for domestic X-ray machines’ production. Sitharaman has proposed a budget estimate of Rs 90958.63 crore as health budget for 2024-25.
Although industry players welcomed the government’s robust measures to fortify India’s healthcare infrastructure and accelerate growth in the pharmaceutical sector, they felt that there could be more allocation in the health budget. Talking to this correspondent, Dr Giridhar Gyani, director general of the Association of Health Care Providers (AHCP-India), said that the budget reflects a significant stride towards sustainable development and innovation in healthcare.
He, however, said that there could have been more increase in the total budget allocation. “Exemption of customs duty on three cancer drugs and changes in basic customs duty on X-ray tubes and flat panel detectors are welcome announcements. But, the financial package for the health budget should have been much higher given the fact that a good amount of money will go after medical research,” said Dr Gyani.
Referring to the government’s intention to cover every elderly person above 70 under Ayushman Bharat Yojana, Dr Gyani said that the ministry needs more money. “It needs to be seen how the government manages the process of giving health benefits under Ayushman Bharat Yojana to all people above 70,” he said. As of now, families from economically weaker sections, families who do not have an earning adult member aged between 16 and 59 years, households headed by female members having no adult male members, and households belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes categories get the benefit of Ayushman Bharat Yojana.
