New Delhi: The Health Ministry has directed all central government hospitals to go digital from July 1. The move is to ensure transparency and good governance in central government hospitals. The health ministry is offering training sessions to the staff and medical fraternity so as to ensure that all central government hospitals go paperless and use E-office and maintain all files digitally. The health ministry said “ It has been decided that all new files will be accepted in electronic mode only from July 1. No file which is being moved for the first time will be accepted in the physical mode and all sections are required to submit these files through e-office only”.
Author: teamdoctorspost
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MTaI urges the Government to reconsider its decision to levy TDS on free medical samples
New Delhi: Medical Technology Association of India (MTaI) has urged the government to reconsider its recently introduced Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) provision on free medical samples provided to doctors. Taxation on these samples will adversely affect hands-on training for doctors and clinicians and therefore impact patients access to life-saving and life-enhancing technologies.
MTaI has also urged the government not to consider the expenses incurred on doctors’ (trainees) travel and stay for product training and application usage as Doctors’ income because they (doctors)are often required to travel mainly due to difficulties in mobilizing medical devices and equipment. Thus, TDS should not be levied on such expenses. MTaI has already written to the concerned authorities highlighting the concerns of the industry.
Introduced in the Finance Act 2022, Section 194R of the Income Tax Act, 1961 regulates the taxability on benefits/perquisites arising to any resident from business or exercise of the profession to keep a check on tax revenue leakage. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) recently on June 16th, 2022, published guidelines to enable effective implementation of the provision from July 1st, 2022, which has created concerns in the industry.
As per the provisions, free medical samples provided to doctors, reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by healthcare professionals and expenditure pertaining to dealer or customer business conference would be treated as a benefit and therefore be subject to TDS deduction.
Pavan Choudary, Chairman & Director General, Medical Technology Association of India (MTaI), said, “Medical device samples are central to providing hands-on training to doctors and clinicians – in vivo and in-vitro and sometimes to even demonstrate to patients on how the procedure will be carried through. Any taxation on samples will prohibit these activities and hinder the doctor’s ability to deliver an optimal patient outcome which will impact patient’s access to life-saving and life-enhancing technologies.”
“Samples provided to doctors and clinicians are always marked to denote that the unit is meant for physicians only and not for sale as required by the Drugs & Cosmetics Act and Medical Devices Rules 2017”, reasoned Choudary.
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IMA writes to Centre, seeks withdrawal of GST on healthcare services
New Delhi : The Indian Medical Association (IMA) wrote a letter to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman requesting an exemption from the Goods and Services Tax (GST) for healthcare services. The letter by the IMA points out to the dual recommendation of the 47th GST council which will make health facility costlier to common man.
In the 47th GST council meeting recommendation of taxing the healthcare sector was taken. The 47th GST Council meeting has recommended that “like the Cancer Therapy Evaluation Programs (CTEPs), common bio-medical waste treatment facilities for treatment or disposal of biomedical waste shall be taxed at 12 per cent so as to allow them an Input Tax Credit (ITC).” Also, the 47th GST Council meeting also recommended that “room rent, excluding ICU, exceeding Rs 5,000 per day per patient charged by the hospital will also be taxed at 5 per cent, without ITC.”
The IMA in its letter to the finance minister has urged to withdraw GST on the healthcare sector as it would increase the cost of treatment drastically. The letter, undersigned by IMA president Dr Sahajanand Prasad Singh, suggested that it would be correct to keep healthcare away from GST. “If not possible, the input tax credit is a must to curtail the rise in healthcare costs. The application of GST is pushing healthcare towards a business model away from a service-centric one.”
In the meantime, IMA also requested an urgent meeting on these serious issues and a hold on GST imposition on room rent and biomedical waste.
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Health Minister orders probe : Doctors come under scanner for “unethical practices”
New Delhi:The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (Mohfw) has taken cognizance of the recent findings shared by the Income Tax Department in its search operations against Bengaluru-based Micro Labs and has directed Ethics Committee under the National Medical Commission to probe into the matter.
It is learnt that Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister for Health and Family Welfare and the Department of Pharmaceuticals have directed the ethics committee under National Medical Commission to look into the nexus of pharma companies and medical practitioners and doctors doing undue promotion and prescription of select medicines. The Ethics Committee has also been asked to submit their report as soon as they can with the findings on how the nexus exploited the patients resulting in the excessive sales. Further, the government has issued show cause notices to medical practitioners and doctors who were covered under the income tax action for irregularities and unfair practices, sources said.
The strict action of the healthminister is the result of the fallout of the raids at Micro Labs by the Income Tax in which it came to light that Micro Labs has been indulging in “unethical practices” of distributing freebies to doctors and medical professional freebies to the tune of Rs.1,000 crore in lieu of promoting products made by the pharmaceutical group.
The initial evidence collected by the IT department has revealed that the group has been debiting in its books of account unallowable expenses on account of distribution of freebies to the medical professionals under the head ‘Sales and Promotion’, the tax department says. “These freebies included travel expenses, perquisites and gifts etc. to doctors and medical professionals for promoting the group’s products under the heads ‘Promotion and Propaganda’, ‘Seminars and Symposiums’, ‘Medical Advisories’ etc.,” it says, adding that the evidence indicates that the group has adopted unethical practices to promote its products and brands. This was exposed as the tax department carried out search and seizure operations on the Bengaluru-based pharmaceutical group on July 6. The search action covered around 36 premises spread across nine states.
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Mandatory 60 days appeal period for errant doctors: EMRB
New Delhi: The State Medical Councils has been directed by the Ethics and Medical Registration Board (EMRB) of the National Medical Council (NMC) to give two months period to the errant doctors to file appeal before the EMRB before taking disciplinary action against them. The State medical councils are statutory bodies that hear complaints against the doctors and initiate action against them including debarring them from future practice, if found guilty.
The Ethics and Medical Registration Board (EMRB) is the appellate authority against the decision of State medical council and as per the existing provision a doctor can appeal in the EMRB against the State medical council within a period of 60 days. “Some State council mention that doctor can approach the EMRB for appeal within 60 days from the date of issue of order of the State council and the order of the State council will be executed only after the period of appeal is over. However all State councils do not follow this practice” the letter from EMRB to State council states.