Profiteering and the pharma lobby

Just about 10 days after the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority released a report that revealed how four private hospitals indulged in profiteering, the Central government transferred the NPPA Chairman Bhupendra Singh and appointed him as the chairperson of the National Authority for Chemical Weapons Convention.

The move sparked anger and concern from healthcare activists, many of whom fear that the transfer was a result of pressure from the pharma and private hospital lobbies. Singh, who took charge in 2016, had played a key role in capping prices of coronary stents and knee implants to make them more affordable. His replacement has not yet been named. Interestingly, Singh’s predecessor Injeti Srinivas too was transferred out of the NPPA less than a year after being appointed in 2014. During his stint, Srinivas had reportedly tried to bring cardiac and diabetic drugs under price control.

The transfer of IAS officers who appear to have put public interest above commercial interests is unfortunate. The Centre has taken great pains to show itself as different from the allegedly corruption-ridden, special-interest-driven UPA government that preceded it. Such transfers are at odds with the image it aspires to showcase. Further, this transfer comes at a time when more state governments—and the Central government itself—move towards an insurance-based health model, which will arguably benefit the private hospitals. At such a time, strong regulators which have the stomach to take on special interests are the need of the hour to ensure that citizens and state entities are not unduly taken advantage of. The NPPA report on the profiteering practices of private hospitals—in some instances to the tune of 1,700 per cent—was a step in that direction. However, the transfer of the officer associated with the report will send the signal to others that putting public interest first could come at a cost to their careers.