Crisis challenges but also creates new opportunities

Winston Churchill advised: Never let a good crisis go to waste. That advice helped rebuild after World War II and can help leaders cope with present day geopolitical tensions.

The volatile West Asia situation has begun to impact segments of the healthcare sector. Let’s consider a few facets. Rising input costs and the helium shortages on the medtech side, and delayed medical value travel on the healthcare services side.

This is yet another wakeup call: to diversify supply routes and vendors and in the case of the latter, strengthen existing patient coordination and explore emerging markets.

While hospitals and patient facilitators will plug the gaps in patient care service, fixing the flaws on the procurement and medical device manufacturing side will not be as easy. Experts have warned of shortages in healthcare consumables like surgical gloves, IV lines, cannulas etc.

The Government of India has already stepped in with some measures, like the temporary exemption of full customs duty on critical petrochemical products until June 30, 2026.

Himanshu Baid, MD, Poly Medicure welcomes the duty waiver, pointing out that raw materials such as polypropylene, ABS, polycarbonate, and PVC resin form the backbone of medical consumables manufacturing, and their exemption provides much-needed relief to domestic manufacturers, especially MSMEs. He also appreciates the recent reversal of the earlier 50 per cent reduction in Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) rates as it will significantly enhance the competitiveness of the Indian medical devices industry on the global stage and support export growth.

But the industry is asking for more reforms. While welcoming the temporary exemption of full customs duty, Rajiv Nath, Forum Coordinator, Association of Indian Medical Devices Industry (AiMeD) reiterated his call for temporary GST relief on raw materials.

Nath cites letters sent thru AiMeD to the Ministries, urging them to “intervene decisively on escalating raw material costs—particularly plastics and chemicals essential for medical devices such as disposables, drug delivery systems, and implants.”

AiMeD feels that the government’s quick action will ensure supply stability, lower input costs, and support uninterrupted production of life-saving devices amid global volatility. It points out that this exemption will benefit not only medical devices but also pharma, packaging, and other downstream industries, ultimately easing burdens on healthcare providers and patients.

AiMeD has also appreciated the sections under the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2026 passed on April 3, which decriminalise numerous punitive measures previously applied to medical devices under the Drugs & Cosmetics Act, 1940. By replacing imprisonment for minor procedural violations with graded monetary penalties and structured adjudication, AiMeD states that the Bill shifts towards a governance-focused framework with minimal government interference. These changes, including amendments to Sections 27A(ii) and 28A, alleviate the compliance burden, reduce litigation, and foster a trust-based ecosystem that empowers the medical devices industry to innovate and grow while upholding public health safeguards, explains the AiMeD note.

AiMeD expects that these reforms will streamline operations for Indian medical devices manufacturers, enhance global competitiveness, and align with international best practices, ultimately benefiting patients and healthcare delivery across the country,

But patient groups voice other concerns. Prof Bejon Kumar Misra, Founder Director of Patient Safety and Access Initiative of India Foundation, cautions, “Jan Vishwas cannot be only for the industry, it has to equally be seen in the favour of the consumers. Trust is the cornerstone for growth, development and transparency. How does the consumer gain from ease of doing business? Do products and services become more affordable, accessible and of high assured quality? Are their complaints heard promptly and efficiently? If yes, then the amendments to the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill 2026 is most welcome and has our full support.”

Radiologists and their clinics have started to feel uneasy as some of their equipment need helium, which generally comes from Qatar. Dr Harsh Mahajan, Mentor, FICCI Health Sector & Founder and Chairman, Mahajan Imaging & Labs explains that the liquid helium shortage, and resulting increased prices, could delay installation of new MRI scanners which require about 1500 litres of liquid helium as the initial fill for the MRI magnets.

Following Churchill’s advice, healthcare leaders can build better based on the learnings from this crisis. Tapping new emerging countries while strengthening existing patient-medical establishment trust will work for the medical travel sector. Switching to helium-free MRIs which are more sustainable, both ecologically and economically could be the solution to the helium shortage.

VIVEKA ROYCHOWDHURY, Editor 

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