The Hindu Business Line : `India can break the semi-monopoly in healthcare market'

Advertisement

Hyderabad Jan. 26. Indian industry has both the opportunity and capability to emerge as a low cost, high quality medical devices and supplies provider to the global healthcare market, and help break the semi-monopoly today, according to Prof William A. Haseltine, an internationally acclaimed scientist-entrepreneur.

For example, India can produce cardiac medical sutures for $10 in comparison to the $200 in the US. Similarly, a drug coated stent, being developed in India could be available at a fraction of the cost of $1,500 it costs in the US, Prof Haseltine said.

Prof Haseltine, who is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Haseltine Associates and has founded seven biotech companies, said India can help the global healthcare by producing standard products and make them available at affordable costs to many countries, which desperately need them.

Healthy trend

"Currently, a semi-monopoly rules these markets globally. Medical supplies and devices are major components in the effective healthcare delivery," said Prof Haseltine, who joined the Board of the Hyderabad-based — Relisys Medical Devices — that is into developing stents, needles and critical care devices.

The global medical devices market is estimated to be a whopping $300 billion and is dominated by multi-national corporations. Prof. Haseltine said MNCs are already coming to India to utilise the "low cost manufacturing base", offered by it to manufacture their own products.

Answering questions, Prof. Haseltine told newspersons on Thursday that a healthy trend in the Indian industry is the enthusiasm to develop these products. Also a large number of non-resident Indians with experience were joining the likes of Dr Reddy's Laboratories, Ranbaxy and other biotech companies.

Own model

With industry slowly driving research in the pharma, biotech, life sciences space, India needs to evolve its own model for development and not depend on the US model, which is not good for the country, said Prof. Haseltine, who as advisor to the venture capital fund, Healthcare Ventures, helped in the creation of at least 20 companies.

He saw a great excitement in the Indian pharma sector, which has developed nearly 50 promising molecules, from just a handful a couple of years ago. A whole lot of generic drug companies, with good profits are venturing to research and working on interesting products.

The Chairman of Relisys Medical Devices, Dr N. Krishna Reddy, said the big challenge for the global healthcare industry is to deliver quality medicare at affordable costs. The company is close to developing affordable stents and other heart related products that would soon make their presence in the global markets, he added.

More Stories on : Health | Medical & Surgical Equipments

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page