PSIC against ending tax exemption for medical devices

KARACHI: The Pakistan Society of Interventional Cardiology (PSIC) has written a letter to the Prime Minister, expressing concerns over the proposal to end the tax exemption for medical devices. According to the letter, the sixth schedule of the Sales Act had previously exempted various medical devices, including stents, from taxes, but the new Finance Act has removed these exemptions.
The letter highlights that these devices are highly complex and not manufactured locally, necessitating their import. 
PSIC warns that 60pc of such medical devices are imported by government institutions, and imposing sales tax on them will affect these institutions' import capacity, potentially impacting the provision of medical facilities.
Former president of the Doctors' Society, Dr. Nadeem Rizvi, criticized the decision, arguing that taxing life-saving medical devices is irrational. He pointed out that taxing the public and then reallocating the same money to the health budget seems counterproductive.