The Cabinet of Ministers has approved a proposal to expand hemodialysis services at government hospitals through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, in response to the growing demand for renal care across the country.
Dialysis services are currently available at around 80 government hospitals, but existing resources are insufficient to meet increasing clinical needs, Cabinet Spokesperson Minister Nalinda Jayatissa said, highlighting the difficulties faced by kidney patients in accessing timely treatment.
Based on the successful PPP model implemented at the Kandy National Hospital, the Ministry of Health and Mass Media plans to develop a framework to introduce similar partnerships at selected government hospitals nationwide.
Under the proposed model, private partners will fully finance and manage hemodialysis machines, reverse osmosis systems, consumables, as well as operations and maintenance, while the government will provide infrastructure and retain full clinical supervision.
Addressing concerns that the initiative could weaken public healthcare services, the Minister said the move would instead strengthen government hospital capacity. “Payments will be made based on services provided. Medical services will be delivered by government health staff, while machinery maintenance will be handled by the private companies,” he explained.
He added that the government will continue to maintain full clinical oversight, with the aim of delivering efficient and modern dialysis services.
Currently, the cost per dialysis session is Rs. 12,221 at the National Hospital Colombo and Rs. 10,713 at Kandy National Hospital, of which Rs. 6,700 is paid to the private partner, the Minister noted.
The Cabinet approved the proposal submitted by the Minister of Health and Mass Media to proceed with the expansion of hemodialysis services through the PPP mechanism.
