KMSCL, the State drug procurement arm now sitting on Kerala's private hospital cost panel

Background

The Managing Director of the Kerala Medical Services Corporation Limited is one of the four members of the panel the State has set up to draft a law on private hospital treatment costs, which makes the corporation itself worth knowing.
KMSCL was incorporated on 28 December 2007 and works under the Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Kerala.
It is the central procurement agency for essential drugs and medical equipment for the State's public health institutions.
It procures drugs worth more than Rs 600 crores and supplies above 400 different types of medical equipment.
It serves over 1,300 public healthcare institutions in the State.
It runs the Karunya Community Pharmacies, which sell medicines at subsidised rates, and the KANIV 108 Ambulance Project for emergency medical and trauma care.
It is a fully government-owned company under the Companies Act, with divisions for essential drugs, equipment services, quality control and supply chain management.