Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha on Thursday raised concerns in Parliament over the alleged nexus between some doctors and diagnostic laboratories, claiming that referral commissions have evolved into a “parallel economy” that inflates patients’ medical bills and promotes unnecessary medical tests. While Chadha clarified that he was not accusing the entire medical profession, he called for action against those engaged in unethical referral practices. His intervention has reignited a long-running debate over transparency, medical ethics and patient rights, with existing National Medical Commission (NMC) regulations already prohibiting doctors from accepting commissions for referrals. Referral Commission AllegationsSpeaking during Zero Hour in the Rajya Sabha, Chadha alleged that a financial ecosystem centred around referral commissions has quietly become embedded within parts of India’s healthcare system. Medical ethics experts have consistently argued that referrals should be based solely on clinical need rather than financial considerations.