Health groups push for strict caps on private hospital fees and medicine margins

Health groups are demanding strict price limits on private hospitals and medical products as the Supreme Court looks closely at hospital pharmacy pricing. The Jan Swasthya Abhiyan and the Working Group on Access to Medicines and Treatment released a joint statement on Monday, October 5, 2026, pointing out that patients still face high and random bills with few ways to question them.

Demands

The Supreme Court recently questioned high markups on medicines sold inside hospital pharmacies and rules forcing patients to buy from hospital-linked stores, while also asking the government to look at trade margin limits. Abhay Shukla, co-convener of the Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, said private healthcare has grown a lot in India without proper rule-making, leaving patients with little bargaining power. He noted that the issue covers both procedure costs and individual medicine prices. While the Clinical Establishments Act of 2010 provides a framework for standardizing charges, its rollout is uneven across the country as several States use their own laws instead.

Reforms

The groups want the Centre and States to set fixed limits on private hospital treatment fees and create fast, easy ways for patients to challenge unfair bills. K.M. Gopakumar from the Working Group on Access to Medicines and Treatment stated that maximum retail prices should not give anyone the right to charge patients many times the actual procurement price. The groups also pointed to past worries raised by the Competition Commission of India about pharmaceutical margins and sales practices. Gayatri Sharma, a community health physician and researcher, warned that revenue-linked pay can pressure doctors to run extra tests or procedures. She urged the National Medical Commission to look at these incentive practices so doctors base treatment only on medical need. Along with private sector rules, the groups want higher public health spending and stronger government hospitals, plus a competition-law review of anti-competitive actions.

Context

Private healthcare costs in India have risen sharply over recent decades alongside the expansion of corporate hospital chains. Patients frequently bear heavy out-of-pocket expenses during long hospital stays because regulatory oversight varies widely from State to State.