Bengaluru, Oct. 10 -- Hospitals across Karnataka will have to disclose the purchase prices of medicines in bills issued to patients from November 1, following a new directive from the state's Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The order applies to government hospitals, private healthcare facilities and hospitals managed by trusts. The move is aimed at improving transparency in medical billing and preventing patients from being charged unfairly for medicines and medical supplies.

As per the new instructions, hospitals must provide detailed information about every medicine supplied to patients. Bills should include the medicine's name, brand, batch number, manufacturing date and expiry date, along with its purchase price. The FDA has als...