In a bid to ease the plight of cancer patients, the government has requisitioned the four per cent import duty on three crucial cancer drugs. To support this, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman made this big announcement while laying out the Union Budget for 2024-25 in the Lok Sabha.
These three medicines, Trastuzumab Deruxtecan, Osimertinib, and Durvalumab, are to be exempted from a 10% customs duty. This step is believed to bring these life-saving treatments closer and cheaper to patients struggling with the feared disease.
In addition, concerning the working environment, the government has reformed the basic customs duty (BCD) of X-ray tubes and flat-panel detectors of used medical X-ray devices. This adjustment is expected to align with the domestic capacity addition under the phased manufacturing programme to encourage the domestic manufacturing industry.
“On immovable property tax, customs duties, my proposals try to aid local industries, enhance value addition, export competitiveness, and ease of tax with the interest of public and consumers in mind and above all surmount,” she said.
Health care professionals have also supported this move. FICCI Health Services Committee Chairman and Mahajan Imaging & Labs Founder & Chairman Harsh Mahajan said that the exemption in customs duty on three life-saving cancer medicines is the right move.
Speaking about the same, Praveen Gupta, the principal director and chief of Neurology at Fortis Hospital, said it is a step in the right direction to exempt and reduce duties on medical technologies vital to setting up a strong domestic Healthcare sector.
He continued, “Despite these measures being significantly below expectations, they would help lower the cost of available advanced cancer treatments, which will be a significant boost as such treatments are usually expensive.
The government’s recent action to reduce cancer patients’ expenses by removing customs duties on essential medicines is also considered a positive step as the nation is working on eradicating health issues being faced by the people.
