Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, with your permission, I shall answer this question. I wish to refer the hon. Member to the reply I made to Parliamentary Question B/848 at our Sitting of 07 October 2025, providing that I highlighted, inter alia, that the Private Health Institutions Act 1989 does not empower my Ministry to regulate the cost of treatment and services and even less, the fixing of the quantum thereof. I reiterate anew that the question of regulating the cost of treatment and services offered by private healthcare institutions is indeed a complex matter which must be approached with due care and caution. It would require wide consultations with all relevant stakeholders, including patients’ associations, private operators, insurance companies and professional bodies. Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, health services, unlike other commodities, vary widely in scope and nature, ranging from simple outpatient consultations to highly specialised surgical procedures, each requiring different levels of medical expertise, technological inputs and infrastructural investments. Given this diversity, it would not be appropriate nor feasible to impose standardised or uniform pricing across the sector as such an approach could risk service quality, discouraging investment, limiting patient choice and affecting the overall sustainability of private healthcare systems.

60 That said, Government remains mindful of the need to safeguard the public interest, particularly in the area of pharmaceuticals where the prices of essential medicines are already being regulated to ensure that patients have continued access to affordable and lifesaving treatments. I am informed that the Ministry of Commerce and Consumer Protection already regulates the prices of several essential pharmaceutical products through a regressive markup mechanism to ensure that medicines remain affordable. As present, this mechanism applies to eight critical classes of medicines, namely –  anticancer;  antidiabetic;  antihypertensive;  cardiovascular medicines;  inhalers;  biological vaccines, and  antacids. On the issue of possible collusion in the fixing of fees and charges, I wish to underline that it is the Competition Commission of Mauritius which is mandated by law to investigate and sanction anticompetitive practices in all sectors, including health. The Commission is warranted to impose financial penalties and take corrective measures to ensure a fair and competitive market pricing. Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I have been informed by the Ministry of Commerce and Consumer Protection that the Competition Commission has been approached to conduct an investigation in the health-related sector in line with legal framework. At the level of my Ministry, our main focus is to upgrade and strengthen services in the public health sector so that citizens may continue to access high quality healthcare free of charge and recourse to private treatment is not done out of necessity, but as a matter of choice. On that scope, I am pleased to announce that several foreign private hospitals have expressed their intention to establish their operations in Mauritius. The presence of multiple hospitals competing in the sector is expected to foster healthy competition which would eventually contribute to more competitive pricing for health services and treatment.

61 For the information of the House, I wish to emphasise that this Government has made it a priority to invest significantly in critical areas such as cancer care, renal and cardiac services as well as in the continual development of our medical personnel. I do not have any qualm in saying that our services in many areas are comparable to those of some of the best private health facilities locally and abroad. Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, while the direct regulation of prices in the private sector is for all intent and purposes not feasible, the matter remains open for discussion in the context of wider consultations in the context of the forthcoming review of the Private Health Institutions Act.

Yes, hon. François!

Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I refer to the cost of a radiological investigation in a private hospital –  CT Angio cardiac: Rs29,000;  CT all abdomen contrast: Rs13,700, totalling Rs42,800. Will the hon. Minister state whether at the level of his Ministry, there are some comparative costs of pricing of services in comparison to the public sector and the private healthcare sectors?

We do not have any such system, but all these facilities are available in our own institutions. I would invite the hon. Member to encourage patients to come to our hospitals. They are welcomed.

The First Member for La Caverne and Phoenix! POLICE & CRIMINAL JUSTICE BILL – PROPOSED INTRODUCTION