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HEALTH

present survey included data from over AYUSH has the maximum number scheme announced in the Union
1.13 lakh households. Prior to this, there of registered ayurvedic doctors (55.47 Budget 2018-19 — is the latest initiative
have been three such surveys carried per cent) followed by registered home- in expanding the health insurance net
out in 1995-96, 2004 and 2014. The data opathy doctors (36.69 per cent) in India. and targets 10 crore poor and deprived
showed that government/public hos- There is an increase in the availability of rural population, the report stated. The
pitals accounted for 42 per cent of the allopathic medical practitioners, dental mission aims to provide a cover of 5
in-patient hospitalisation (excluding surgeons and nurses per lakh popula- lakh per family per year for secondary
childbirth). Private hospitals accounted tion over the years. and tertiary care procedures.
for 55 per cent and charitable/trust/ The report further states that the Based on the health survey (71st
NGO-run hospitals accounted for 2.7 cost of treatment has been on the rise round) conducted by the NSSO, an aver-
per cent of such cases. in India and it has led to inequity in age medical expenditure incurred dur-
The report said the average expendi- access to health care services. “India ing stay at hospital from January 2013
ture per hospital childbirth was about spends only 1.28 per cent of its GDP to June 2014 was 14,935 for rural and
2,404 in rural India, and 3,106 in (2017-18) on health. Per capita public 24,436 for urban in India.
urban areas for government hospitals. expenditure on health in nominal
It was about 20,788 in rural and 29,105 terms has gone up from 621 in 2009- Govt expenditure
in urban for private hospitals, it added. 10 to 1,657 in 2017-18. The Centre-state The government’s expenditure on
Surgery was done in about 28 per cent health services has increased continu-
of hospital childbirths in India, as per ously over the years and the target is to
the report. Interestingly, only about 17 The government’s raise it to 2.5 per cent of the country’s
per cent of childbirths in government GDP by 2025, Health Minister Harsh
hospitals were surgery cases, of which expenditure on health Vardhan recently told the Rajya Sabha.
over 92 per cent were provided free. In He said the experience of last 10
private hospitals, about 55 per cent of services has increased years shows that with every passing
childbirths were surgery cases and only continuously over the year, the public expenditure on health
1 per cent was provided free. services is “continuously increasing”.
years and the target is The minister informed that the Nation-
Very few doctors to raise it to al Health Policy 2017 envisages increas-
A separate government report has ing the public health expenditure to 2.5
pointed out that there is only one 2.5 per cent of the per cent of the GDP by 2025.
allopathic government doctor for eve- country’s GDP by 2025, The policy recommends that State
ry 10,926 people in India against the governments should spend more than
WHO’s recommended doctor-popu- Health Minister Harsh 8 per cent of their budget on the health
lation ratio of 1:1000. Compiled by the Vardhan recently told sector by 2020. Replying to supplemen-
Central Bureau of Health Intelligence taries, the minister said the govern-
(CBHI), the National Health Profile, 2019, the Rajya Sabha ment proposes to set up 1.5 lakh health
stated that the number of registered and wellness centres by 2022 under the
allopathic doctors possessing recog- Aayushman Bharat programme. Of this
nised medical qualifications (under share in total public expenditure on 18,000-19,000 have already been estab-
the MCI Act) and registered with state health was 37:63 in 2017-18,” it said. lished, he said. These centres will boost
medical councils for 2017 and 2018 The report highlighted that health healthcare facilities in the rural as well
was 43,581 and 41,371, respectively. “At insurance was a growing segment in as Urban areas.
present, an average population served the country, even as it hasn’t taken off In a written reply, Vardhan said the
by a government allopathic doctor is fully and several measures are needed government announced 4 per cent
10,926,” the report said. to improve and expand the insurance health and education cess in place of
The report, however, highlighted coverage. The advent of private insur- 3 per cent education cess on personal
that there has been a marked improve- ers in India saw the introduction of income tax and corporation tax to ca-
ment in the number of dentists. The many innovative products like family ter to the education and health needs
number of dental surgeons registered floater plans, top-up plans, critical ill- of poor and rural families. In addition,
with the central/state dental councils ness plans, hospital cash and top-up he said the Higher Education Funding
up to December 31, 2018, was 2,54,283. policies, it said. Agency (HEFA) has started supporting
There has been a steady rise in the The Ayushman Bharat Mission- the infrastructure works of medical
number of registered AYUSH doctors National Health Protection Mission institutions.
in India from 7,73,668 in 2017 to 7,99,879 or the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yo-
in 2018. jana (PMJAY) — world’s largest health LETTERS@TEHELKA.COM

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