Medicines purchase: Govt hosp deans may face flak

Deans of the state-run Jamshedji Jeejeebhoy (JJ), Cama & Albless, Gokuldas Tejpal (GT) and St George hospitals will come under the scanner, if they have purchased more than 10 per cent of the medicine quota locally, said officials from the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER).

This comes in the backdrop of local medicine suppliers’ complaint that government hospitals purchase medicines frequently, but have outstanding payments of Rs 60 crore over the last five years.

Dr TP Lahane, director, DMER said currently they are auditing the bills of medicine suppliers and soon they will conduct an audit of medicine procuring receipts of each hospital. “We will be checking the entire drugs requisite forms of hospitals and if the deans are found purchasing more than the 10 per cent quota, strict action will be taken against them,” he said.

As per the government resolution (GR), hospitals can purchase only 10 per cent of the medicines at the local level. “It has been learnt that only Rs 5 crore is outstanding for the medicines that were purchased locally by these hospitals,” claimed Dr Lahane.

Meanwhile, it has been 12 days since the supply of medicines was stopped for all state-run hospitals, whereby patients can be affected. “Everyday, we get a list of medicines from the hospitals. But hospital administrations are not ready to pay our dues of Rs 60 crore, which is pending over the last five years,” said Dr Abhay Pandey, national president, All Food and Drug Licence Holder Foundation (AFDLHF).

However, DMER claimed that all hospitals are operating smoothly and there has been no postponement of any surgery or operation.

“We have a medicine stock for three months, so there is no question of a shortage. If medicine suppliers continue to threaten the administration by stopping supplies, they will be blacklisted in future.”