Govt to buy over 100 TB-detection machines

With thousands of tuberculosis patients going undiagnosed, the Union health ministry plans to purchase more than 100 additional Gene Xpert machines next year for speedier detection so that more people can be brought under the treatment net.

In addition, the ministry intends to carry out a special 15-day door-to-door campaign in January during which health workers will visit urban slums and other risk areas to find out if there are people with TB symptoms but without a medical diagnosis.

Out of 28 lakh estimated TB patients in India in 2013, only 53% (more than 14 lakh) are registered for treatment at the government-run clinics whereas 45% (above 12 lakh) finished the treatment and only 39% (10 lakh) experienced recurrence free survival after one year.

“The treatment efficiency will improve if we move away from smear test and use modern molecular tools that can give test results within 90 minutes rather than waiting for days as was the case with previous diagnostic techniques,” said Barry Bloom, distinguished service professor at the Harvard University and one of advisers to Indian TB researchers.

“We currently have more than 600 Gene Xpert machines—one each for every district. We plan to buy 104 more and also share some of them with the private sector,” Sunil Kharpade, deputy director general at the Central TB Division at the health ministry told DH.

Absence of Gene Xpert machines in the private sector is a major cause of worry for the public health workers as a large number of patients, even from poor backgrounds, seek TB care from the thriving private healthcare sector.

But since the private sector is not eligible for concessional pricing for Xpert, the manufacturers set higher prices for reagents and instruments for private laboratories.

There are additional costs (like import duties) and commercial margins, as a result, TB diagnosis becomes expensive in the private sector (Rs 2,000).  There are about 100 machines in the private sector.

“The TB community needs to come up with a private sector access plan to ensure that good TB tools are also available and accessible in the private sector (where patients often begin their pathway to TB care),” commented Madhukar Pai from McGill University, Canada.

The special drive will take  place between January 1-15, 2017, to find out more of missing TB cases. “Initially, this will be only for 15 days but after six to seven   months, we can have it on a larger scale,” Khaparde added.
DH News Service