Last Updated on September 23, 2020 by The Health Master
Oxygen price should be capped for hospitals, not suppliers
The demand for oxygen has shot up now a days. The All India Industrial Gas Manufacturers’ Association (AIIGMA), with 300 members, is working with the government to step up supplies. AIIGMA president Saket Tiku talks to TOI about the increasing costs and shortages and what’s being done to tackle them.
Why are there a lot of reports about rise in the price of oxygen?
All government hospitals and big hospitals have long-term contracts for oxygen supply. In these cases, the rates have not changed. But the rates have gone up in the unorganized sector of healthcare, like in smaller hospitals and nursing homes who are supplied by smaller reseller. The price has gone up by five or six rupees at best which is unlikely to impact patients.
One cylinder of 7 cubic metre of oxygen, which costs Rs 175-200 should last for around 20 hours. Even counting all costs it would amount to Rs 350. So you see it is not the price at the level of the seller that is impacting the patient. We sell to the hospital not to the patient. It is what hospitals charge that impact patients. So maybe govt has to cap the cost of oxygen at the level of the hospital.
Also read: Price hike of key drug ingredients: China
When government has already capped them, how can prices go up?
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) fixed the price of oxygen gas at Rs 17.49 per cubic metre, but not of the raw material, which is liquid oxygen. Oxygen gas is mostly filled in cylinders by converting liquid oxygen into gaseous form. The price of liquid oxygen is not capped and that has gone up. If I am a reseller of oxygen gas, I am buying liquid oxygen at Rs 20-25 but I am asked to sell it for Rs 17.50 and so he resorts to hanky-panky.
He has to bear the raised cost of liquid oxygen, cost of its conversion to gas and the transport cost of oxygen cylinders. We gave a costing calculation to the government and asked for price to be capped at that level. Nothing has been done yet. The government also needs to revise the rate for medical oxygen gas as the present cap is not applicable as the buying price of the raw material is more than ceiling price for the gas.
Despite the ceiling price, in general, oxygen gas was being sold at Rs 9-11 per cubic metre. But now everyone is charging the ceiling price. That is because the gas manufacturing plants have to make up for the loss of not being able to produce other gases such as nitrogen and argon as the bulk of its capacity is now being harnessed to produce oxygen.
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