GST changes signal shift toward affordable cancer care: Aiims researchers
Recent changes to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) framework -- simplified tax structure, removal of tax on drugs and medical equipment and increased taxation on tobacco products -- mark an important policy shift towards making cancer care more affordable and accessible, AIIMS researchers have said.
In a commentary published in Frontier, Oncologist Dr Abhishek Shankar and Scientist Dr Vaibhav Sahni from the Department of Radiation Oncology, Dr BR Ambedkar Institute Rotary Cancer Hospital, AIIMS, Delhi, noted that the reforms acknowledge the financial toxicity faced by cancer patients and attempt to address long-standing gaps in treatment affordability.
The researchers mentioned that the GST council, in its 56th meeting, recommended the total exemption of 33 lifesaving drugs, including those used in cancer care, from GST altogether (erstwhile 12 per cent to now zero and three critical drugs for rare diseases and cancer from 5 per cent earlier to zero).
The council has also recommende