With discounts on offer, doctors laughing their way to banks in Pune

While a surge in the H1N1 cases is being witnessed, the doctors are making brisk business as they are being offered “bumper discount” deals by pharma companies.

As the expiry date of anti-influenza vaccines draws near with many vaccine stocks expiring in June, the bigger orders are placed, the heftier discounts are being offered.

Of course, this does not mean that the end user will get the vaccine at cheaper rates.

“We are being offered vaccines at heavy discounted prices. We can get up to 40-50% of actual selling price of vaccine. Ideally, they should be increasing the rate and reducing discount as vaccines are in demand, but since the expiry is near, they are offering discounts,” said a paediatrician on condition of anonymity.

Another pediatrician said that deals like ‘sell more get more’ are also being offered to doctors. “It is just like basics of any other business. Valued customers get better discounts. Hence, many vaccine companies have based discounts on sales. The bigger the order, the greater the discount,” said another leading paediatrician.

When asked about discounts received, few general practitioners said they received only about 15-25% discounts. “No company representative has approached me for heavy discounts. I get the usual discount that medicine distributor offers. Maybe because I don’t require many doses,” said a Kondhwa-based general practioner.

While doctors are offered the vaccines at a lesser rate, the discount may not extend to patients.

“Even if a doctor doesn’t offer the vaccine at discount he receives, it’s not wrong. The vaccine needs to be refrigerated, maintained and plus there is cost of administering the vaccine and consultation costs of doctors,” said Dr Vivek Billampelly, former president of General Practioners’ Association, Pune.

Meanwhile, as five injectable vaccines are in demand at the moment, the Serum Institute of India (SII), which had to destroy several million doses of their intranasal swine flu vaccine Nasovac only a couple of months ago due to lack of demand, has once again readied four lakh doses of the vaccine.

“The fresh stock, currently undergoing mandatory tests at government laboratories, is expected to hit the market in 2-3 weeks,” confirmed Dr Rajeev Dhere, SII’s senior director.

“There was zero demand for the vaccine and we had to destroy several million doses. Since we received several requests, we have gone into production of four lakh doses. We have the capacity for more but this time we will wait for demand,” said Dr Dhere.