The Budget has laid out the necessary steps to take the economy on a growth path amidst stiff fiscal conditions. The Finance Minister alluded to the Budget announcements to be based on nine pillars and the foundation of the same was agriculture and healthcare. In a much needed shift, healthcare was given its due recognition.

The government has totally allocated about ₹1.5-lakh crore for the social sector, which includes healthcare and education. The highlight of the announcements that concern our sector is the new health protection scheme, which will provide an insurance cover up to ₹1 lakh per family. Additionally, senior citizens would be able to avail up to ₹30,000 over the ₹1-lakh cover. The universal insurance scheme is the need of the hour because India lags behind several of the global economies in terms of access to healthcare. The Indian government’s expenditure in healthcare is amongst the lowest in the world, due to tight fiscal discipline.

Suneeta Reddy, MD, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise

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