India accelerates its transition towards mercury-free healthcare
India is advancing efforts to remove mercury-containing medical thermometers and blood-pressure monitors from healthcare services, with a target of achieving a mercury-free transition by 2030.
Editorial Insight
Key Highlights
Important points readers should notice.
Issue/Event: India is accelerating its effort to phase out mercury-containing medical thermometers and blood-pressure monitors by 2030.
Location: The initiative covers healthcare services across India, with state-level assessments and implementation activities.
Authority/Organisation: The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, WHO, UNEP and other partners are supporting the transition.
Action Taken: Fourteen states have completed assessments, 12 states have issued phase-out orders, and training and mercury-waste management planning are underway.
Impact: The transition aims to reduce avoidable mercury exposure, protect healthcare workers and patients, and limit environmental contamination without compromising the quality of medical measurements.
In an update published on 22 October 2026, WHO India reported progress in the country's efforts to replace these devices and improve the management of mercury-containing waste.
The initiative brings together the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, WHO, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Global Environment Facility and other technical partners.
A technical mission held in New Delhi from 28 to 30 September 2026 reviewed progress and discussed the next phase of implementation.
Editorial Analysis
Why This Matters
The shift towards mercury-free healthcare connects patient safety with environmental protection. When mercury-containing devices break or are discarded improperly, they can release a toxic substance into healthcare premises and the wider environment. Safer alternatives, combined with effective waste-management procedures, can help reduce this risk. The initiative also highlights the importance of consistent standards across healthcare facilities. Replacing equipment without staff training, quality assurance or safe disposal arrangements would leave important gaps in the transition. For patients, the priority remains accurate temperature and blood-pressure measurements. Mercury-free equipment must be reliable, appropriate for clinical use and used correctly. For healthcare workers, clear procedures and training can reduce risks associated with damaged equipment and the handling of legacy mercury waste. For policymakers, the challenge is to turn national objectives into practical changes at hospitals, clinics and other healthcare facilities across the country.
The programme focuses on two connected priorities: replacing mercury-containing equipment with reliable alternatives and ensuring that existing mercury-containing devices are handled safely when removed from service.
What progress has India made?
WHO reported that 14 states had completed inventories and assessments of mercury-based medical devices, while 12 states had issued phase-out orders.
The states and Union Territories reported by WHO to have eliminated the use of mercury-based medical devices in public health services are Delhi, Punjab, Manipur, Sikkim, Goa, Haryana, Ladakh, Chandigarh and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
These developments indicate progress towards the national objective. However, they do not mean that every healthcare facility across India has completed the transition.
Inventories help authorities understand which devices remain in use, where replacement equipment is needed and how legacy mercury waste should be managed.
The assessments can also help officials plan procurement, staff training and safe disposal arrangements.
Why is mercury a concern in healthcare?
Mercury is a toxic metal that can harm human health and the environment when exposure occurs.
Traditional mercury thermometers and mercury-based blood-pressure monitors contain the metal within their measuring systems. If a device breaks, is dismantled improperly or is discarded without suitable controls, mercury may escape into the surrounding environment.
Elemental mercury can release vapour at room temperature. Inhaling mercury vapour can harm the nervous system, kidneys and lungs, depending on the level and duration of exposure.
Improper disposal can also contaminate healthcare premises and contribute to environmental pollution.
The risk is not that an intact thermometer automatically makes its user ill. The concern centres on breakage, exposure and unsafe handling or disposal, particularly in healthcare facilities where equipment may be stored, used and discarded over long periods.
What will replace mercury-based devices?
Mercury-free alternatives include digital thermometers for measuring body temperature and digital or aneroid blood-pressure monitors.
The transition requires more than purchasing replacement devices. Healthcare facilities must ensure that the alternatives are accurate, reliable, suitable for clinical use and maintained correctly.
Staff also need training in using the equipment and checking measurements. Procurement decisions should consider device quality, availability, maintenance requirements and the needs of different healthcare settings.
A safe transition must avoid compromising patient care. Medical facilities need dependable equipment before older devices are withdrawn from routine use.
Why safe disposal is equally important
Replacing mercury-containing equipment creates another responsibility: safely managing devices that have already been used.
WHO reported that the next phase of India's efforts will prioritise mercury-waste management, including systems for segregation, safe collection, temporary storage, transport and disposal.
Thirty state-nominated nodal officers received online training on the national strategy, occupational safety and mercury-waste management systems.
WHO said these systems are intended to be established by late 2027 through collaboration between health and environmental departments.
Removing a device from a clinic does not eliminate its mercury content. Simply throwing an old thermometer or blood-pressure monitor into ordinary waste could create further risks if it breaks or is handled incorrectly.
Healthcare facilities therefore need suitable procedures for identifying, storing and transferring mercury-containing equipment to appropriate waste-management channels.
What does the 2030 target mean for patients?
The transition aims to strengthen healthcare safety while reducing avoidable environmental contamination.
Patients may increasingly encounter mercury-free thermometers and blood-pressure monitors in public healthcare settings as replacement programmes progress.
However, the 2030 target should not be interpreted as a guarantee that every facility has already changed its equipment or that all implementation challenges have been resolved.
Progress will depend on funding, procurement, product quality, training, the availability of suitable alternatives and the capacity to manage existing mercury waste.
The broader public-health lesson is that safer healthcare includes not only diagnosis and treatment but also the responsible management of medical equipment throughout its life cycle.
