• Research released at UN General Assembly week shows tests predicting heart disease and diabetes are among lowest cost solutions for improving Indian health
• Full research available here

Redcliffe Labs’ diagnostic tests are more cost effective at tackling illnesses, like diabetes and heart disease, than many standard treatments, new analysis released at the UN General Assembly today shows, highlighting the importance of digitally-enabled and low-cost diagnostics businesses in combatting India’s rising pandemic of non-communicable diseases.

India’s economic output lost to NCDs is estimated at $3.6 trillion for the period from 2012 to 2030, creating an urgent need for innovative new models of healthcare to protect lives and prevent crippling costs to the country’s already stretched healthcare system. Using metrics common to public healthcare systems, the analysis quantifies the impact of Redcliffe’s diagnostic tools

The research was supported by Redcliffe investor and global impact firm LeapFrog Investments, alongside the UK’s PA Consulting, and will be featured by the newly-launched Impact Investment Initiative (Triple I) for Global Health, endorsed by leaders at the 2023 G7 Hiroshima Summit. LeapFrog Investments is a founding partner of the Triple I for GH, which will raise awareness and share best practices on impact investment in global health.

It found Redcliffe’s tests were up to 8 times more cost effective than national treatment coverage for protecting against the consequences of cardiovascular disease, while its test for diabetes were less than 2/3 the cost of the cheapest comparable screening and telemedicine interventions*.

Redcliffe offers a range of diagnostic tools for preventable diseases, using a nation-wide network of pathology labs, digital booking systems, and at-home phlebotomy services to lower costs and improve convenience across the 25 Indian states where it operates. These innovations have helped it become one of India’s lowest cost provider of tests for diabetes, thyroid, heart risk markers and others.

The ability to compare the impact of different health investments is critical in India, where the growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) threatens to overwhelm the resources of both public and private health systems.

For the NCD epidemic, both public and private health providers have important roles to play in broadening the reach of services like diagnostics, and driving innovations that lower cost and increase convenience.

Dr Sohini Sengupta, Medical Laboratory Director at Redcliffe Labs says: “Redcliffe Labs’ focus on affordable and convenient diagnostic services is a frontline defence against the growing epidemic of non-communicable diseases in India. By slashing costs and improving convenience Redcliffe has already delivered almost half a billion dollars in economic savings for India, and we plan to accelerate this impact in coming years.

“This research shows the growing role diagnostics is playing in not only lowering the costs of healthcare, but empowering consumers to monitor and track their health to protect their wellbeing and boost their prosperity. It’s not just about how many patients you reach; it’s about how profoundly you impact their lives and the broader community.” 

Biju Mohandas, Partner and Global Co-Leader for Healthcare Investments at LeapFrog Investments, comments: “This research shows the critical importance of innovation in healthcare for India’s economic future. Impact investing in healthcare has long focused on reach and volume metrics, but this new data digs deeper to quantify economic effects and deliver comparative analysis across the whole healthcare ecosystem.”

“What the results demonstrate is startling, and for impact investors show that what is a fast-growing and profitable sector is also delivering immense and transformative social impact.”

*The analysis used the common Disease Adjusted Life Years (DALY) metric to compare cost efficiency, see below table for full comparisons and references: