Gorakhpur city's cancer patients have revealed that instead of being prescribed medicines available in hospitals, they are being forced to buy them from outside. Consequently — medication costs, pain, and mental distress are all increasing.
One patient was supposed to receive free medicines from the hospital, but due to different medicines being written on the prescription, they had to spend about 12,000 rupees to buy them. Later, when they sought reimbursement, the claim was rejected — stating that the medicines were available at the hospital.
Several other patients also complained that the provision of convenience is merely nominal — in reality, medicines are being prescribed under expensive brand names, even though cheaper generic drugs are available in the hospital's pharmacy.
It is alleged that some doctors and pharmaceutical companies are colluding to be part of this system, which is increasing both the financial burden and physical suffering of patients.
In life-threatening diseases like cancer, access to medicines and appropriate treatment are vital. But when patients are forced to purchase medicines from outside, despite their availability in hospitals, it becomes not just a medical inconvenience but also a deficit of justice.
Patients and their families state that hospitals and the administration should: only write "pharmaceutical names" on prescriptions — so that patients can obtain affordable generic medicines. The use of medicines available in the hospital's pharmacy should be ensured, rather than there being a tendency towards expensive brand-name drugs.
If patients are forced to buy medicines from outside, then financial assistance from the government should be received on time, and the full payment for medicine bills should be covered.
In such circumstances, the government, hospital administration, and medical committee — all bear the responsibility to ensure that people suffering from sensitive diseases like cancer are not troubled, but rather that access to treatment and medicines is made easier.
