Health Minister Rajitha Senarathne has decided to reduce the price of surgical equipment parallel to the recent price reduction of essential drug items.
Accordingly, under the first phase, it has planned to reduce the price of the eye lenses. Minster points out that there are many complaints from the patients regarding the prices of eye lenses.
Currently, with the intervention of the Health Minister, hundred thousand eye lenses have been given to patients, who are coming to the eye clinics in government hospitals but the patients going to private hospitals buy them at exorbitant prices.
Further, it was revealed that the eye lenses imported from India cost around Rs. 6,000 but they are sold at Rs. 25,000. According to the minister, an eye lens can be sold at Rs.10, 000 after regulating the price. He has also instructed the National Drug Regulatory Authority to draft the price reduction process.