Sanofi to join hands with Apollo Hospitals for diabetes clinics rollout

New Delhi, October 01, 2014 – In a new experimental model, Paris headquartered pharma multinational Sanofi plans to partner with Apollo Hospitals, the largest domestic corporate hospital chain to offer diabetes management services through a chain of ‘sugar clinics’.

This is being planned through a joint venture Apollo Sugar Clinics Ltd — a subsidiary of Apollo Health and Lifestyle, where Sanofi proposes to buy 20% stake.

The companies have currently applied for government approvals for the structure and other specifics are still being worked out, executives from both companies said.

However in the first phase, Apollo is in the process of taking the count of sugar clinics to 50 in next two months from 28 at present. The clinics, pitched as one-stop shop for diabetics, will offer packages to better manage diabetes through higher medicine compliance, dietary, exercise regimens and other lifestyle changes and promise to better manage diabetes related complications.

The plan is to roll out another 150 clinics over the period of next twothree years, with an investment of Rs 30-60 lakh each.

India is the first country in the world, where the French multinational is trying out such a business model. Based on the experience, it may consider adapting it to other countries in future, indicated Christopher Viehbacher, CEO, Sanofi. Sanofi has already attempted something similar through one of its product innovation All Star, a low-cost, reusable insulin pen device. The French firm developed the device to suit Indian conditions and launched it in the domestic market in 2012. “In the backdr ..
That is when Sanofi came into picture which understands from its global experience a critical part of this disorder,” said Prathap Reddy, chairman, Apollo HospitalsBSE -0.17 % Group.

India is estimated to have over 65 million people with diabetes and 77.2 million people diagnosed as being pre-diabetics.

“The world over, government and private sector and all stakeholders are grappling to reduce healthcare costs. We do clinical research in diabetes globally and can come up with the best medicines and products to manage or treat a medical condition. But this (the sugar clinics) will give us that context to try out evidence based approach in healthcare and find out ways to provide better healthcare at reduced costs,” added Viehbacher.

Gagan Bhalla, CEO, Apollo Sugar Clinics cited studies to estimate that an average diabetic in urban India spends about Rs 30,000 per year on treatment and the cost of late diagnosis of diabetes can mean the patient end up spending 10 to 18 times higher, he said. PTI