Private hospital medicine prices in Karnataka were found to be as much as 52 times higher than the rates at which manufacturers supplied them to hospitals, Health Minister U.T. Khader said on Thursday, citing inspections conducted by state officials in Bengaluru and other districts.
Khader said the inspection confirmed a substantial gap between the actual institutional purchase price of medicines and the maximum retail price, or MRP, printed on their packaging. According to the minister, hospitals were receiving several high-value medicines, cancer drugs, antibiotics and medical supplies at significantly discounted institutional rates, but patients were being billed at the printed MRP or at prices close to it.
The minister said the difference meant that some medicines were being charged at 10 to 52 times their original purchase price. He called for immediate intervention by the Centre to improve transparency in medicine pricing and protect patients from excessive financial burdens during treatment.
The Karnataka government has written to the Centre with details of 253 medicines in which officials found major price disparities, Khader said. He added that the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority has the authority to regulate medicine prices, while hospitals should be required to display both the actual purchase price and the MRP on patient bills.
The demand would require hospitals to provide patients with clearer information about how medicine charges are calculated. Khader said mandatory disclosure of institutional prices could also help authorities act on complaints alleging that private hospitals were collecting excessive amounts from patients. He also called for greater transparency in institutional price-setting and for the expansion of the list of medicines covered by price controls under the Drug Price Control Order.
The health minister further proposed the creation of an expert committee to examine trade margins on high-value medicines and medical supplies. He said the committee should consider measures to regulate these margins and introduce transparency between the mandatory cost of products and their MRP.
The inspection operation was conducted on September 25 and 26 across Bengaluru and other districts, covering wholesale outlets, hospitals and other institutions. More than 768 medical-use supplies and 189 high-cost medicines were examined, Khader said. The findings will also be brought to the Centre’s attention.
The disclosure places private hospital billing practices within a wider regulatory question: while medicine manufacturers may offer institutions rates lower than the printed MRP, patients may not currently see that difference reflected clearly in their bills. The state’s proposed disclosure requirement is intended to make the pricing chain more visible to patients and provide authorities with a clearer basis for investigating complaints.
Health Department Principal Secretary Ritwik Ranjanam Pandey and Food Safety and Drug Administration Commissioner K. Srinivas were present at the minister’s news conference. Khader said the department would continue efforts within its jurisdiction to ensure that essential and life-saving healthcare services remain affordable and that patients are protected from excessive financial pressure.