The Annual Budget is one of the most-awaited financial events of the year. The government had ordered a cut of nearly 20 per cent in its 2014/15 healthcare budget due to fiscal strains, putting at risk key disease control initiatives in a country whose public spending on health is already among the lowest in the world. My expectation from the government would be to increase the healthcare expenditure as a sizeable portion of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The government should upgrade basic health infrastructure and make medical services more affordable for the poor.
Dominated by private players, India’s healthcare industry is growing at an annual clip of around 15 percent, but public spending has remained low and resulted in a dilapidated network of government hospitals and clinics, especially in rural areas. Government should look into strengthening the healthcare facility in this region, considering more than 70 per cent of our population belongs here. Government should also consider focusing on creating awareness of other diseases like diabetes and obesity beyond cancer and AIDS, as these are the modern diseases, which are affecting the future of our country.
- Advertisement -
Comments are closed.