Pema Khandu has been Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister since July, 2016.
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu has welcomed the Centre's decision to regulate the prices of coronary stents and extended his government's support to the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers. Union Chemicals and Fertilisers Minister Ananth Kumar in a letter to the states outlined the Centre's measures to provide improved and affordable health care in the country.
These include regulating the prices of drugs and medical devices to reduce the burden of poor patients and their kin.
Taking view of high incidences of coronary artery disease (CAD), the Centre included coronary stent implantation in Schedule 1 of the Drugs (Prices Control) Order of 2013.
This enabled the National Pharmaceuticals Pricing Authority (NPPA) to bring down prices by 50 per cent.
The regulated price of bare metal stents is Rs 7,260 and of drug eluting metallic stents (DES) and bio- restorable vascular scaffold/biodegradable stents is Rs 29,600.
"This is a huge relief for poor patients suffering from CAD," Mr Khandu said in a letter to the Union Minister yesterday.
He assured that the Centre's notification will be made available to all concerned for necessary publicity.
"The state government is committed to monitoring the availability and price of stent for the benefit of the denizens," the chief minister said. He also appealed to the people to avail the regulated benefit for CAD cases.
"If any hospital/nursing homes overcharges or provides excuses of non-availability of stents, the matter should be immediately reported or complained to www.nppa.gov.in or through NPPA's helpline number 1800111255," Mr Khandu said.