Moneycontrol | Supreme Court’s push to fix medical rates is unjustified and counterproductive

In the Indian blockbuster series of judicial interventions in policymaking, the latest episode on fixing the rates of medical services charged by hospitals in the country dropped last week. The Supreme Court of India, overcome by the pressing concerns of rising healthcare costs and disparities in costs of treatments availed at public and private hospitals, heard a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by the NGO ‘Veterans Forum for Transparency in Public Life’. In the characteristic style of PILs, the Court directed the Union Government to find a way to fix the price bands for all medical procedures and treatments offered by hospitals in the country and report back in 6 weeks. Or else, the Court threatened to impose the medical rates charged under the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) on all hospitals as an interim measure. Hospital stocks responded promptly by shedding more than a few points. Read the full article here.