Tamil Nadu Orders Hospital Inspections Over Medicine Pricing and Drug Misuse Concerns

The inspections will cover medicines, medical devices and consumables, with officials asked to compare procurement costs with prices charged to patients. The exercise will also examine possible violations of pricing and labelling regulations.

S. Gurubharathi, Joint Director of Drugs Control and Controlling Authority-cum-Licensing Authority, issued the directions on October 1 to assistant directors, specifying the records to be checked and the reporting procedures to be followed.

Inspectors have been instructed to examine purchase invoices, procurement prices, printed MRPs, sale prices and patient billing records, with particular attention to high-value medicines and injections. Significant differences between procurement costs and patient charges, along with suspected overcharging or discrepancies in records, must be documented and backed by supporting evidence.

The inspections have been ordered on a priority basis, with consolidated reports to be submitted to the Directorate of Drugs Control. Where violations of pricing rules are established, action will be taken under the Drugs (Prices Control) Order, 2013.

In a separate communication, the department directed officials to intensify surveillance against the unauthorised sale and misuse of habit-forming prescription medicines. Reports involving the misuse of drugs such as Tapentadol and Nitrazepam have been identified as a public health concern.

Assistant directors have been asked to conduct surprise inspections at retail and wholesale pharmacies, particularly in areas where complaints or information regarding misuse have been received.

During these inspections, officials will verify prescriptions, purchase and sales records, bills, stock registers and other relevant documents. They have also been instructed to closely monitor the availability and use of disposable syringes and needles, which could be diverted for misuse.

Any discrepancy between physical stock and recorded inventories must be investigated, with officials required to verify the stock and determine the reasons for the mismatch.

The department has directed officers to submit action-taken reports along with supporting documents for further proceedings. The hospital inspections will similarly require detailed records to substantiate any significant findings before they are forwarded to the Directorate.