VIJAYAWADA: Taking a serious view of the sharp escalation in Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO) procurement costs and the non-functionality of Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) plants in State government hospitals following the Covid-19 pandemic, Health Minister Y Satya Kumar Yadav on Monday ordered a comprehensive audit into medical oxygen demand and expenditure.
Chairing a high-level review meeting lasting over two hours at the APIIC Towers in Mangalagiri, the Minister directed officials to audit LMO procurement within two weeks and submit a final report by October 15 after implementing corrective measures across eight pilot government hospitals for two months.
Expressing concern over skyrocketing expenditure, Satya Kumar Yadav revealed that while LMO procurement in teaching hospitals cost `60.51 crore during the four-year pre-Covid period (2016–2020), it surged to `180.82 crore over the post-Covid four-year period (2022–2026). During the pandemic, the government spent `95.43 crore.
While acknowledging that the addition of new teaching hospitals and increased bed capacity contributed to the rise, the Minister noted a stark mismatch between reported demand and actual supply. The audit will be conducted by PATH, a global health organisation partnering with the State government, covering teaching hospitals in Anantapur (including the super-speciality facility), Guntur, Vijayawada, and Vizag, alongside two district and two area hospitals.
The review brought to light that 161 out of 162 PSA oxygen plants, built at a cost of `105 crore across 62 DME hospitals and 100 secondary health facilities, lie idle. Officials attributed the breakdown to a lack of technical staff to monitor oxygen purity and a unified pipeline system for both ICU and general wards.
Officials informed the Minister that restoring and maintaining these plants would require `10.96 crore for repairs and `9.30 crore in annual maintenance across DME and DSH facilities.
In response, Satya Kumar directed officials to submit a report on whether reviving these plants is economically viable or if alternative measures should be taken, while studying the functional PSA model in Rajasthan.
Ordering immediate measures to plug oxygen leaks and eliminate waste, the Minister instructed hospital authorities to establish strict oversight and track oxygen consumption at both the ward and ICU bed levels, aiming to bring procurement costs back toward pre-Covid levels.