Healthcare Industry Reacts to Union Budget 2020-21
The new budget proposes to allocate Rs. 69000 crores for the healthcare sector in India. Healthcare leaders weigh on this and more.
Highlights
A total of Rs 69,000 crore has been allocated for the health sector (up from Rs 62,659.12 crore in the previous year)
Rs 6000 crore is reserved for Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (PMJAY) under which hospitals under PPP mode would be stablished in 112 “aspirational districts”
Proceeds from tax on medical devices will be used for funding government hospitals in tier II and tier III towns
Existing district hospitals will be converted to medical colleges through PPP mode to address the shortage of healthcare professionals
Anti-TB campaign “TB Harega, Desh Jeetega” to be launched to eliminate TB by 2025
Jan Aushadhi Kendras would be established in all districts of country to provide medicines at affordable rates
Dr. Vivek Desai, Managing Director, Hosmac India Pvt. Ltd.
The Union budget 2020 has been a mixed bag for healthcare. On one hand, an increment in the allocation of healthcare fund towards Ayushman Bharat of about 8000 crores is a welcome step. There has been an emphasis on hospitals in Tier II and III cities getting viability gap funding, proposed by NITI Aayog. The push for skilling the healthcare task force and job creation is also commendable.
On the other hand, the new health cess imposed on imported medical device duties will increase healthcare costs; India still imports most of its sophisticated, high-end medical devices and this will further increase the device cost by 5.5 percent, which ultimately will be borne by the patient.
Furthermore, premiums in health insurance sector remain unaddressed; more exemptions could have been given; limits could have been increased.
Mr. Gautam Khanna, CEO of P.D. Hinduja Hospital & MRC
As a health provider ,I am pleased that the government has taken significant measures to lay focus and cater towards the needs of the healthcare industry. Our existing TB program at the hospital will further help the country strengthen its fight against TB and support governments campaign TB Harega, Desh Jeetega. The schemes introduced to provide assistance to 20,000 empanelled hospital under the flagship of Ayushman Bharat in tier 2 and 3 cities will benefit to make healthcare accessible and affordable to the citizens, our hospital is currently also supporting the PM's dream project.
We are delighted with the budget allotment of 3000cr for the skill development sector which has also been a foray for P.D Hinduja hospital & MRC, this will help to further develop skills of Indian healthcare practitioners to match the international standards. Also, district hospitals been attached to medical education institutes is a good thought out step by the Government that will help to increase the number of doctors in our country which is the need of the hour. However, we will need more clarity on how the big hospitals will increase its students for the DNB Courses as this will require more professors which is a limitation today. Overall the allotments in total of INR 69,000 crores inclusive of INR 6,400 crore inclusive of PM Jan Aroyga Yojana will help entrepreneurs and healthcare providers set up care centers which will help to multiply the serves to the population"
Joy Chakroborty, Chairman, WR Taskforce Healthcare, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) ; COO, P.D Hinduja Hospital and Medical Research Centre
“I am pleased that the government has built further on the healthcare agendas that were introduced last year and has increased the budget by 7% to 69,000cr. Our hospital has already been closely working with the government for treatment and prevention of TB and the special focus announced by the government through ‘TB Harega, Desh Jeetega’ initiative will help supplement our efforts. The extension of Ayushman Bharat scheme with the allotment of 6400 crs and the proposal to set up more hospitals under PPP model in the Tier-II, Tier-III cities, will help to make affordable healthcare services available to many more Indians.
The government plans to boost medical education and skill development will help in tackling the shortage of doctors and allied health professionals, which is critical for providing quality healthcare services to our large population. While the PPP model to set up medical colleges attached with district hospitals is a positive step, proper norms and protocols should be laid down to ensure quality of education and proper governance of these medical colleges. Setting up of strong digital infrastructure in the country could directly enable several technological innovations in healthcare like data analytics , AI and ML for better prevention and treatment of diseased. The steps and announced towards better nutrition are much needed for prevention of various diseases. Coverage of more diseases and vaccines under the national immunization program, Mission Indradhanush, was much needed. The facilities announced for ease of investment clearance, emphasis on infrastructure should encourage more investment and setting up of more healthcare facilities. All these steps announced in the budget will help to build a healthier India.
Dr. Vispi Jokhi MS CEO, Masina Hospital, Mumbai
An increase in allocation to healthcare sector, to INR 69000 crores, is always welcome, however in proportion in GDP, I hope that they can reach at least upto 2.5 % of GDP for healthcare. With regard to the Public Private Partnership - PPP model, it is a welcome move especially for charitable hospitals like ours. Areas like burns care & mental health care units which are deficient areas, even in a metro city like Mumbai would benefit hugely from this initiative. The major cost of burns care is related to medicines & surgical consumables. The availability of these are through the ‘Jan Aushadhi’ outlets, on a consistent basis with quality assurance would go a long way in reducing the cost of burn care. The budget seems to be silent on implementation of insurance cover on mental health issues, which has been spoken of for a long time.
Dr Alok Roy, chairman of Medica group of Hospitals
The government has shown its commitment towards healthy India by providing INR 69,000 crore to the healthcare sector. It has rightfully focused on bringing in several key structural reforms for the nation moving towards that goal. It is heartening to see the Government’s display of commitment and concern towards rural healthcare by announcing more empanelled hospitals under the flagship Ayushman Bharat Scheme in Tier 2 and 3 cities. The budget has rightly outlined by specifically focusing to those areas where there are no hospitals. The proposal to set up Viability Gap funding window to build hospitals in the public-private-partnership (PPP) model will widen the scope of the government’s flagship scheme, AB-PM-JAY and will provide large scale employment opportunities to youth.
It is encouraging to see the government’s support towards manufacturing high end medical devices under the Make in India program. This will increase affordability and ease of access in procuring the equipment.
On the other hand, the announcement of cess on import of medical equipment will be used for creating infrastructure for health services in the aspirational districts is accepted as a welcome move.
The allocation of ₹3000 crore for skill development which also includes hospital staff, care givers and paramedical staff increasing competency in the healthcare sector, is encouraging. The expansion of the Jan Aushadhi scheme is a move to make affordable healthcare at the door step of the common man.
Budget 2020 brings in very positive growth for the healthcare delivery in the country. This is not a populist budget, but a budget that has far reaching positive impact on healthcare sector.
Mr. Gerald Jaideep, CEO, Medvarsity Online Ltd.
The 2020 budget allocation for healthcare is perceptibly moderate with a vision of some good opportunities for the medical fraternities and some cons that need to be addressed.The PPP model to deal with the shortage of doctors as proposed in the budget-2020 is going to be substantially beneficial to the Indian healthcare sector. The tie-up of medical colleges with district hospitals for increasing the number of doctors that provide care to the patients will enhance the overall quality of the Indian healthcare ecosystem as this will lead to a greater number of skilled doctors in the Indian medical fraternity.The penetration of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) as mentioned in the budget is going to bring a revolutionary change in the operations at healthcare facilities. Incorporating technologies in the daily tasks like documentation and approval through all the levels of the hierarchy will help hospital facilities reduce the total time of the patient journey right from the admission to identification of the condition, treatment, and healing. This, in turn, is going to make a significant difference in the overall turnaround time and cost, which will prove to be beneficial to both – patients and the healthcare facilities.On the nursing front, the ecosystem is going to observe overseas opportunities of jobs as a lot of European countries such as the UK need Indian nurses in their healthcare workforce. However, it is important to focus on educating nurses to overcome the language barrier that they face in foreign nations will need an action plan. Educating nurses in foreign languages will also help them to upskill as they will be able to take up career advancement courses in those languages. While the budget allocation for healthcare is declared as an overpromised INR 69,000 crores, it’s imperative to have a proper plan of action to bring the necessary change in healthcare as targeted in the Ayushman Bharat campaign.The budget also promises a viability gap funding for hospitals and medical colleges to provide doctors with more DNB and FNB courses under the NBE for bridging the skill-gap in the Indian medical fraternity. However, the funding misses on a stern action plan to produce results.Online education degree is poised to get approval; however, it is still actionable only for the top 100 institutions due to which other online education organizations’ contribution to the evolution of healthcare will be limited.
Mrs Neerja Birla, Founder and Chairperson, Mpower
We welcome the government’s decision to allocate Rs 69,000 crore for the health sector, which takes a comprehensive approach to healthcare and wellness. I hope that this holistic vision will encompass mental health as well, especially in areas of creating the required infrastructure and encouraging more mental healthcare professionals.
The budget also takes positive steps to expand health insurance under Ayushman Bharat scheme.This will help to reduce the burden of medical expenses on lower income families. We look forward to making this scheme more inclusive and effective by covering mental health issues as well.
Amidst the rising mental health concerns witnessed in India, it is imperative that these issues are not left unaddressed. A comprehensive vision and progressive policy can result in a healthy India that will positively impact the socio-economic fabric of the country.
Suresh Vazirani, Chairman & Managing Director, Transasia-Erba Group
Looks like a good budget for healthcare sector but with crucial lacunae still not addressed. Allocation of Rs 69,000 crores to healthcare sector is surely a welcome step, including the new “TB harega, Desh jeetega” project to eradicate TB by 2025.
It’s good to know that the government plans to expand the Jan Aushadi Kendras to all districts to provide medicines at affordable rates. On the same lines, the government needs to develop some mechanism that provides affordable diagnostics as well.
The Finance Minister's announcement of allocating Rs. 3000 crore towards skill development is a greatly welcome move. This will address shortage of skilled manpower crucial for penetration of diagnostic centres in rural India. It is also in line with Transasia's own skill development projects under way in the country.
However, the budget doesn't address some of the immediate concerns of the Indian families with respect to medical costs and expenditures. The diagnostic segment, which is taxed much higher than medical services, needed relief by reducing their tax bracket. That has not been done and resultantly the common man will continue to spend high amounts on basic and advanced diagnostic tests.
While it is good that the government recognizes entrepreneurship as the strength of India and has proposed various schemes that will encourage Make in India and exports, however, important reforms needed to boost manufacturing in India have been left out of the budget.
We have been demanding reduction in the GST rate on medical supplies, diagnostic equipment, and devices from the current 18 percent to 5 percent. That would have helped in making affordable healthcare a reality.
Also, the issue of import duty tariff has not been addressed. India's import duty is the lowest among BRIC countries, at zero to 7.5 percent - making it cheaper to import devices rather than encouraging home grown, cutting edge technology Indian devices. We had demanded the duty to be raised to 15-20 per cent, as lower import duties dissuades manufacturers from producing them in India.