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Hospital Stocks Plummet Up to 7% After Supreme Court Flags 10x Drug Markups
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CNBC TV18•30-09-2026, 14:22
Hospital Stocks Plummet Up to 7% After Supreme Court Flags 10x Drug Markups
- •Shares of major hospital groups including Apollo Hospitals, Max Healthcare, Fortis Healthcare, and KIMS fell between 5% and 7% on Wednesday.
- •The decline follows the Supreme Court questioning hospitals about a 10x markup on drug prices, where a ₹2,700 drug is billed at ₹27,000 to patients.
- •The Apex Court also raised concerns about the pricing differential between essential and non-essential drugs and the limited scope of price control orders.
- •A Public Interest Litigation on drug price fixation and generic mandates prompted the court to question the government on the absence of a 16% markup across all drugs and devices.
- •The Supreme Court expressed concern over hospitals compelling patients to purchase drugs exclusively from in-house pharmacies; the next hearing is scheduled for October 12.
Key Questions Answered
Hospital stocks dropped between 5% and 7% after the Supreme Court flagged massive drug price markups, questioning why a cancer medicine billed to retailers at ₹2,700 is sold to patients for ₹27,000, and raised concerns over in-house pharmacy mandates.
The Supreme Court questioned the extreme 10x price differential where retailer drug costs of ₹2,700 reach an MRP of ₹27,000, while also questioning why a standard 16% margin cannot apply across all essential, non-essential, patented, and generic drugs.
The Supreme Court has scheduled the next hearing for October 12, though no formal orders have been passed by the bench yet.
