Healthcare that covers everyone: expectations from budget 2019
The healthcare sector in India is highly fragmented. Apart from the delay in access to timely and quality treatment, people are over-dependent on a few institutions for healthcare, and there is a lack of good infrastructure for primary care. This coupled with high costs and minimal government spending on healthcare exacerbate the situation. There is a need to transform India’s healthcare landscape and improve access to quality and affordable services irrespective of their socioeconomic status or location. One of the most favorable steps in this direction was in the form of the Ayushman Bharat scheme launched by the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. With him elected to the office once again this year and the government set to announce its first set of policies, we look forward to a conducive budget. The following are our expectations from the budget ahead.
One of the best ways to enable robust healthcare infrastructure is to focus on new-age companies and ground-level work in this domain. This will enable people to access treatment everywhere rather than rely on select institutions. Another area of focus should be health insurance which typically covers charges in hospital in-patient expenses. There is a need to expand coverage of the Ayushman Bharat scheme and extend it to others apart from the current 10 crore + households. This can be akin to the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana, wherein the applicant can participate by co-paying the premium amount with the government. There is also a need to enable cashless pre- and post-hospitalization and OPD coverage. This can help in giving access to next-level social security to people and new-age technology players like Medlife can be instrumental in this change.
We also look forward to the approval of the e-pharmacy rules to ensure the availability of medicines across the country. It is imperative that this is addressed with immediate effect as it will ensure affordable and accessible medical infrastructure for the entire country.
The government must also increase incentives in the area of preventative testing. While preventive testing currently accounts for <10 per cent of the overall market, growing at a CAGR of 20 per cent, incentives and tax breaks will help the segment to grow at a CAGR of 27 per cent (FY19E-23E). The biggest benefit of such a policy will be the fact that more people will get screened for health conditions at an earlier stage.
The government also needs to address vaccination and better coverage akin to what was achieved in case of the polio vaccine. This will enable the prevention of diseases such as Hepatitis, Chicken Pox, etc. A recent study published by Goldman Sachs on 21st May 2019 indicated the addition of outpatient settings like the BPJS1 scheme in Indonesia can prove to be a gamechanger for healthcare services in India including the diagnostic services. It has the potential to contribute to about 20 per cent to 25 per cent of the total industry growth within 4 to 5 years of its launch. Our estimates suggest that only 15 per cent to 20 per cent of the total diagnostics services (or 7 per cent - 8 per cent of total TAM) delivered in such settings are being reimbursed via insurance claims.
Last but not least, an urgent need of the hour is to address the violence against doctors. Their security must get due attention as only when they feel safe and secure can they provide better healthcare.
In conclusion
India needs innovative, tech-based, large-scale as well as affordable healthcare solutions with immediate effect. The government has been pushing for affordable and accessible healthcare in its last term, and we expect concrete action going forward.
_20240903195420_original_image_47.webp)
