The finance minister has said that the withdrawal of VAT and taxes on life-saving medical equipment, including heart stents, dialysis filters, and other essential treatment supplies, is expected to help reduce healthcare costs.
According to the budget proposal, the tax exemptions are aimed at easing the financial burden on patients suffering from heart and kidney diseases.
Under the proposed budget, the 10 percent VAT imposed at the supplier level on heart stents has been withdrawn. As a result, the price of each stent is expected to fall by up to Tk 20,000, significantly reducing the cost of cardiac treatment.
Similarly, the 15 percent VAT and 5 percent advance tax on the import of dialysis filters used for kidney patients have been withdrawn. This measure is expected to reduce the cost of dialysis procedures, with government estimates indicating a decrease of around Tk 800 per session for each patient.
In addition, the existing 7.5 percent advance tax on the import of hemodialysis blood tubing sets used in kidney treatment has also been scrapped, further easing expenses for patients requiring regular dialysis.
Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury unveiled the proposed national budget for the 2026–27 fiscal year in parliament on Thursday.
The proposed budget, the first under the current government, has an outlay of Tk938,000 crore.
