Health won’t be fundamental right

New Delhi: Almost two years after the BJP-led NDA government suggested making health a “fundamental right” in its draft national health policy, the Centre has taken a u-turn. The policy — whetted and approved by a specially constituted Group of Ministers (GoM) — focuses on providing comprehensive, assured healthcare, but it does not recognise health as a constituional guarantee.

However, the health ministry in their proposed policy has suggested that the the country’s health budget be enhanced from 1.87 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to 2.5 per cent to ensure that its ambitious plans of providing a basic package of healthcare services — essential, comprehensive health check up, drugs, OPD care, Ayush services — can be provided free of cost to all.

The policy, likely to come to the Cabinet for its approval soon, also proposes the imposition of a health “cess”, the same way education cess was imposed a decade ago.

“Health will not become a fundamental right, but people will have a right to health in terms of affordability and receiving assured services. We will assure a basic package of services like essential, comprehensive health check up, screenings, free drugs, free OPD care, Ayush services will be provided to people free of cost irrespective of the income in all government health set ups,” C.K. Mishra, Union health secretary told this newspaper.

Calling it a “crisp policy” that will ensure healthcare security to people, Mr Mishra said that the new policy is looking at providing healthcare services free to everyone.

“It has been suggested that the tax or the cess should come back to health in the health budget. Like the sin tax should come back to health ministry so that it can be utilised in programmes like non-commincable diseases (NCDs),” Mr Mishra said. The government is looking at leveraging the strength of the private sector to provide better services to people.

Apart from the proposal to increase private participation, the policy also recommends making manufacturing of devices easy for Indian companies.

“There is a lot of stress on Make in India in the new policy. We are not saying no to imports but indigenous production will go up,” added sources.

The government has proposed that proceeds from the health cess be used by exclusively for investment in public health.

Recently, a group of ministers was constituted, including external affairs minister, defence minister, finance minister, women and child development (WCD) minister, Union health minister and Union HRD minister at the behest of PM Narendra Modi, to deliberate on the proposed policy so as to make appropriate changes. “The GoM suggested that all efforts should be made to utilise the available resources in both private and public sector,” sources said.