Union Health Budget 2023 condemned “demands have fallen on deaf ears”: Healthcare practitioners, activists, Health News, ET HealthWorld


Union Health Budget 2023 condemned “demands have fallen on deaf ears”: Healthcare practitioners, activists

New Delhi: While taking potshots at the central government’s claims that ‘India has emerged a shining star’ and ‘showing signs of robust viability’, Jan Swasthiya Abhiyaan (JSA), a nationwide network of medical practitioners and healthcare activists, has come out in strong terms condemning the inadequacies in the Union Budget 2023-24 towards the health sector. While condemning the budget, the JSA has reiterated its call for concrete steps to be taken to improve the ailing health system and increased funding for critical programmes. The group believes “all the demands have fallen on deaf ears,” given the fact that COVID-19 has been harsh on people with inadequate health facilities.

JSA emphasised in a media statement that allocations for health and related programmes had been reduced in real terms by 2 per cent in the budget for 2023-24 compared to the budget estimate (BE) for 2022–23. It further elaborates, “As a per cent of GDP, the Union Government allocation to health has declined from 0.37 per cent to 0.31 per cent between 2021–22 actual expenditure and 2023–24 BE.”

In the Union Budget, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare’s allocation has been cut from Rs 86200 crore (2022–23 BE) to Rs 79145 crore (2022–23 RE), an eight per cent decline in nominal terms. JSA feels that the Union Budget allocations for the health sector have witnessed sharp budgetary cuts in crucial health schemes, making it the second year in a row.

According to JSA, the National Health Mission (NHM), one of the initiatives doing relatively better has also witnessed a decline of Rs 374 crore from Rs 37, 159 crore (in 2022-23) to Rs 36, 875 crore (in 2023-24) which in contrast with the inflation rate in real terms amounts to Rs 1,438 crore.

“A large part of the resources allocated to NHM are not being spent or transferred on a timely basis to the states- there is a considerable decline in actual expenditure and revised estimates compared to the previous year. It was essential that the government undertake Page 3 of 5 special efforts to ensure safe motherhood, universal vaccination, and expand various disease control programmes to catch up with the loss during the pandemic, but this major need has been ignored,” the JSA statement to the press said.

JSA criticised the government for not mentioning much about the 150,000 health and wellness centres (HWCs) to be built by December 2022 in the healthcare budget. It further said, “It has been clearly seen during the COVID-19 pandemic Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) abysmally failed in providing access to healthcare services to the poor and deprived sections during COVID-19. The amount allocated for PMJAY in Budget Estimates 2021-22 was Rs 6400 crore, but in actual terms, only Rs 3115 crore have been spent! Despite massive failures, the government is continuing large and wasteful allocations for this scheme, which has been further increased to Rs 7200 crore. Notably, 75 per cent of payments under PMJAY has been to the private sector, proving that schemes like PMJAY divert government money to the private sector. The government should immediately scrap PMJAY and instead use these resources to strengthen the public health system.

While referring to the cuts in Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (a scheme for pregnant women) by Rs 41 crore and the fact that allocations for Saksham Anganwadi and POSHAN 2.0 have increased only marginally by Rs. 291 crore, JSA feels, “Allocations for nutrition, women’s health, and protection continue to be neglected.”

Despite alarmingly high mental health cases in the population and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) issuing notices on the inhuman and deplorable conditions of the mental health institutes recorded by it across the country, the Government of India (GoI) has a “measly allocation” of Rs 40 crore to the existing National Mental Health Programme (NMHP), which amounts to spending just 30 paise per person a year. “In the absence of adequate support for the mental health programme on the ground, telemental health initiatives remain limited to better-off sections of society,” JSA expressed concern.

On account of medical research in India, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which has led several research initiatives during the pandemic, including vaccines, has also received a cut. Previous year’s (2022–23 BE) allocation was Rs 2198 crore, and no substantial change has been observed this year. JSA concludes, “This is going to affect the funding of several health research institutes who depend on ICMR funding.”





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