‘Import duty on medical equipment should be waived’

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Staff Reporter :

Health sector entrepreneurs urged the government to reduce medical expenses to build a healthy nation. At the same time, the entrepreneurs of this sector want government policy support in the health sector, which is under pressure due to the complications caused by the quota reform movement.

The director of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FBCCI), Women Entrepreneur Priti Chakraborty thinks that the import duty of medical equipment should be withdrawn completely to ensure necessary medical treatment to the common patients. After a recent meeting at FBCCI, she said that the citizens of the country should be ensured good health through the health sector.

Because, she said, healthy population can make the country advance through hard work. However, in the budget of the current fiscal year 2024-25, the import duty on medical equipment and materials used in hospitals has been increased from 1(one) percent to 10 percent.

Besides, a new HS code has been created for spinal needles used during surgery imposing 5 percent import duty in the new budget. This will increase the cost of imported medical equipment. As a result the patient’s treatment cost has been increased sharply.

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This will make it more difficult for private hospitals to ensure good medical treatment on the one hand and to cope with the pressure of additional costs on the other hand. A major crisis is brewing in the medical system for such increasing medical costs for this very reason. Besides, there is no major positive change in the allocation of health sector in the budget.

However, the import duty pressure on medical devices also has been increased. This will increase the cost of treatment several times.

The Ministry of Health and NBR will be formally informed about this on behalf of the private medical colleges.
Priti Chakraborty said that the import duty of medical equipment and materials should be reduced to 1 (one) percent as before. Besides, by creating a new HS code for spinal needle, the 5 percent import duty was not correct. It will attract zero percent import duty. Apart from this, a new crisis has been created in the health sector due to the complications caused by the quota movement.

In this situation, policy support should be given in this sector. He said that the highest expenditure in health care is on diagnosis and medicine. Due to shortage of tests in government hospitals in the country, most of the patients have to rely on private hospitals and clinics. At present more than 60 percent of people seek medical services in private hospitals. So it can be easily assumed that the pressure of excessive taxation in this sector will increase the medical expenses as well as increase the disparity in healthcare.

According to her, it is necessary to increase the cooperation of women entrepreneurs to create employment in the country.

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