Dr. Shuchin Bajaj, Founder-Director, Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services.
“We welcome the government’s decision to reduce the GST on critical medicines and medical devices to 5% and exempt life and health insurance from GST altogether. These rate reductions will immediately lower the cost of angioplasty stents, cancer drugs, dialysis consumables, and essential diagnostics in our 25+ hospitals, making quality care more affordable to millions of middle- and low-income families.
By lowering the price of insurance premiums, the 0% GST on health and life cover will encourage more people to protect themselves and their loved ones, reducing the need for catastrophic out-of-pocket spending. Together, these measures will expand early diagnosis, strengthen preventive care, and accelerate India’s journey toward universal health access goals that Ujala Cygnus remains committed to every single day. We would also continue to urge the government to allow hospitals and healthcare establishments to take benefit of GST input credit, as this will lower the cost of healthcare to patients even further”
Dr. Mohita Chandra, Medical Director, Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services
“The recent GST cuts—reducing medicines to 5 %, waiving GST on 33 life-saving medicines for critical cancer, rare-disease, diabetes, and other chronic conditions drugs, and exempting life and health insurance from any levy, will have the greatest impact in Tier-II, Tier-III cities and rural areas where cost often dictates whether a patient seeks care or stays home.
Lower drug prices and cheaper insurance premiums mean families can start treatment earlier, follow up without fear of mounting bills, and adopt preventive check-ups that catch disease before it becomes catastrophic. At Ujala Cygnus, we see this reform translating into more early-stage diagnoses, higher adherence to therapy, and a measurable drop in avoidable complications. By making quality healthcare affordable at the doorstep, this policy will ease the long-term disease burden and bring us closer to truly universal care.”
Dr. Sunita Maheshwari, Paediatric Cardiologist and Chief Dreamer, RxDx Clinics
These GST reforms are a milestone step in making quality healthcare accessible and affordable to millions of Indians. By lowering GST on a large number of medicines from 12% to 5%, slashing rates on medical devices, and including 33 lifesaving drugs — for cancer and rare diseases — in the zero-tax slab, the government has made a bold move in curbing the cost of treatment burdening patients and families.
At RxDx Clinics, our goal has always been to redefine the healthcare experience by combining world-class infrastructure, state-of-the-art diagnostics, and skilled doctors with a strong patient-centric focus. The recent reforms will significantly reduce out-of-pocket spending, especially in a country where nearly 65% of healthcare costs are still paid directly by patients. At RxDx, we already support senior citizens by offering discounts on every service, and with the additional relief on GST, healthcare will now become even more affordable for the communities we serve.
Just as valuable is the exclusion of health and life insurance premiums from GST, which we feel will induce more families to take timely insurance cover and protection. With more individuals taking preventive care, early diagnoses, and organized treatment, this step has the potential to change healthcare outcomes throughout communities.
We believe this change will strengthen India’s primary healthcare framework and lead to better health outcomes across communities.