Locally-made stents to hit markets by June, SC told

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the federal government to submit a comprehensive report about calculation of estimated price and other features of locally made cardiac stents, after being informed that the device was expected to reach markets by June 2018.

A three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, heard a suo motu notice of substandard stents fraud in cardiac ward of hospitals. The court gave these directions, after Additional Attorney General Waqar Rana informed the court that the stents made locally were being sent to Germany for testing and certification. According to Additional Attorney General Waqar Rana, the project has been undertaken by the National University of Science and Technology and a local company has made the stunts.

“We expect that the process of testing and certification will be completed and the stents will be available in June 2018,” the law officer said. To a court query, Dr Murtaza, In-charge of the said project said that the said stents would be available to the patients for Rs15,000.

Waqar Rana further informed the court that Medical Devices Registration Regulations were also notified after the approval from the federal government on January 1, 2018 and mostly the problems under the previous rules have been removed and the procedure was simplified.

Earlier, during the course of hearing, Chief Justice expressed the hope that the locally made stents would soon be available before June adding that they are trying to ensure provision of adequate and inexpensive medical facilities to the general public.

The CJ also said that they are happy to know that by June they would have their own locally made stents, adding that poor people have to borrow money for purchasingexpensive stents. Later, the court adjourned the hearing until Saturday. Last year, in January, Chief Justice had taken suo motu notice of substandard stents fraud in cardiac ward of Mayo Hospital Lahore and other hospitals of Punjab.

According to report, the hospital staff apply substandard stents, which cost few thousands and the amount received from patients is around one hundred eighty thousand rupees, while most of the patients remained deprived of stunts despite they paid for that.

Agencies add: The Supreme Court also issued notices to eight public and private hospitals directing them to submit details of stents purchased by them in the last three months. The CJ summoned heads of the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) Lahore, Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology (RIC), Shifa International Hospital Islamabad, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) Islamabad, Quaid-e-Azam International Hospital Rawalpindi, Kulsoom International Hospital Islamabad, Agha Khan Hospital Karachi and National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NIC) Karachi to appear before it on Saturday with reports regarding angioplasty stent packages. Justice Saqib Nisar remarked that there should not be any compromise in the matter relating to public interest. He said that they would not allow anyone to benefit from one’s illness.