Budget Expectations 2015: Gautam Khanna, CEO, P. D. Hinduja Hospital and Medical Research Centre

The need of the hour is to establish India as the global hub for quality healthcare and medical technology. There are four key areas which need actions in the upcoming health budget: Customs Duty, Service Tax, Commitment to Capacity Building, PPP.

About 70 per cent of medical devices are currently imported. Import duties on some machines, equipment, reagents, diagnostic kits can reach as high as 26 per cent. We urge the government to reduce import duties to single digit so that these imported lifesaving drugs and advanced medical equipment become affordable to all.

A complete waiver of service tax will enable charitable hospitals to add better and more cost effective healthcare ecosystems.

Currently there is a short fall of two million doctors and four million nurses. By 2025, total demand for new jobs will rise to 15 to 20 million health care professionals. Hence, we request the government to focus on medical education and training to provide a sustained supply of skilled medical professionals at the right places. Investments in training and specialised programs for Allied Health professionals could address the current talent supply crunch in the country.

Healthcare funding is another major concern which can be addressed through strategic PPPs. Today, 75 per cent of Indian citizens are without a health insurance. 58 per cent percent of total health expenditure is out-of-pocket. So there’s an urgent need for ‘accessible, affordable and quality’ healthcare for all, for which the Government should extend associations with private institutions of healthcare delivery. The Government could put in place, a public private partnership model for healthcare, which could involve subsidies in drugs, therapies and procedures, and cost efficient and effective health care delivery. There can be a special incentives for PPP with Not for Profit/ Charity Hospitals to extend the private hospital care to Government Hospitals to benefit the masses.