Hospitals and other clinical establishments across states and Union Territories have been directed by the Centre to post their service and facility charges in locations where patients can readily see them.

Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava stated in a directive circulated to health authorities across states and union territories that publishing treatment prices where patients and their families can easily find them gives people the information needed to compare the financial implications of different care pathways and plan their spending.

The letter noted that clearer processes could reduce preventable mix-ups over charges and disputes tied to billing, while also building patient confidence in how healthcare services are delivered. State and union territory authorities received a call from the health secretary to audit how well existing price-display rules are being followed and to put concrete steps in place for stronger on-the-ground enforcement.

Two pieces of health-sector legislation — the Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010, alongside the Clinical Establishments (Central Government) Rules, 2012 — place an obligation on covered facilities to post their service charges and available amenities in a visible spot, rendered both in the local language and in English.

Drawing on the constitutional designation of health as a state subject, the secretary pointed out that responsibility for putting applicable provisions into practice — and ensuring they are followed — falls to the individual state and union territory administrations. Each state and union territory maintains its own set of rules governing these matters, and many of those frameworks include provisions that require service charges to be posted or made visible to consumers.

A request was also put forward that the relevant bodies and clinical establishments receive formal guidance from the authorities.

Notices displaying bundled pricing for overseas patients seeking medical or Ayush treatment are to be posted in visible locations at clinical establishments, under guidance issued by the central government. The letter from the health secretary outlined how the proposal could give overseas patients clearer information on costs and billing procedures, reduce disputes, and bolster confidence in India as a destination for medical and Ayush treatment.

Rajiv Nath — who coordinates the Association of Indian Medical Device Industry (AiMeD) forum — characterised the move as a step toward greater openness in how information reaches the public and one that places patients at the centre of the process. Nath argued that full effectiveness depends on visibility stretching across every link in the supply chain, rather than stopping at the hospital's point of delivery.

Under the proposed framework, profit margins would be calculated starting from either the landed cost of imported goods or the ex-factory price set by the manufacturer, with the initial point of measurement fixed at the first transaction in the supply chain — and where GST is levied on a sale to an importer, that transaction would serve as the designated starting point. The organisation's representative noted that it had expressed willingness to assist in developing a consistent national framework.