Government Expenditure On Health Overtakes Private Spending For First Time In India, Thanks To Ayushman Bharat Scheme

For the first time in India, out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE) on health has gone below 40 per cent as the government health expenditure (GHE) is more than private individuals due to the Ayushman Bharat scheme.

A study by Oomen C Kurian, published on ORF Online, says that in 2020-21 and 2021-22, India saw increased investments being channeled into the health sector by the Narendra Modi government.

"A sharp decline of OOPE in health is observed, from 64.2 per cent in 2013-14 to 39.4 per cent in 2021-22, while the GHE increased sharply from 28.6 per cent to 48.0 per cent," the study said.

This also means that public spending has finally overtaken out-of-pocket spending on health 'transforming the health financing landscape of the country and triggering sharp decreases in the health spending burden on Indian families.'

However, India still has a long distance to cover to reach the National Health Policy (NHP) 2017 target it set for itself, of reaching 2.5 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) worth of government expenditure in health by 2025.

With the recent health cover announcement for all citizens above 70 years, the capacity to absorb funds in the public sector is bound to improve, helping India to achieve its target of health expenditure.