NATHEALTH to help accelerate partnerships among various stakeholders

New Delhi,

National Health Policy and National Health Protection Scheme (NHPS) are the
main drivers for achieving the goal of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and
with these strong catalysts, Indian healthcare sector has geared up to
provide access to affordable quality healthcare. Healthcare federation of
India -NATHEALTH on the eve of Ayushman Bharat Diwas.

The provision of Rs. 5 lakh per family for 10 crore families or 50 crore
beneficiaries across the country could go a long way to achieve the goals of
UHC. NATHEALTH, a multi-segment collaborative platform, has extended all its
support to stakeholders for the successful implementation of the world’s
largest government-funded health insurance programme.

“In 2017, the government announced the National Health Policy NHP-2017, with
major focus on quality and affordable healthcare to all…The government’s
focus on Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is expected to offer several
opportunities for diverse stakeholders of healthcare sector and contribute
to health & wellbeing of the Nation as a whole.. Now, NHPS/M(National Health
Protection Scheme or Mission) announced in the recent Union Budget, should
help in taking forward the goals set in the Health Policy… Healthcare
Providers, Health Insurers, Diagnostics, MedTech and other stakeholders need
to collaborate in order to contribute to the success of NHPS.. NATHEALTH is
making all possible efforts to enable significant partnerships among various
stakeholders,” said Mr Anjan Bose, Secretary General, NATHEALTH

According to NATHEALTH, focus on prevention and wellness under AB-NHPM will
help achieving the goal of Swasth Bharat. The government has shown its full
commitment towards the early implementation of Ayushman Bharat-National
Health Protection Mission (AB-NHPS) by rolling out the first health and
wellness centre at Bijapur district in Chhattisgarh, as promised by the Govt
in the recent Budget Announcement of 1.5 Lakh Health and Wellness Centres
across the Nation.

Mr. Daljit Singh, President, NATHEALTH, said, “Over the years NATHEALTH has
been emphasizing on promotion of prevention and wellness by all stakeholders
to achieve the goal of Swasth Bharat. It is very promising to note that the
very first HWC is well equipped to transform primary healthcare with
holistic and inclusive approach. Along with child and mother care, the
centre would provide facilities for both communicable and non communicable
diseases. Adding yoga as a facility clearly indicates that we now have a
robust primary healthcare ecosystem with focus on prevention and wellness.”

“Stakeholder engagement is the key to effective implementation of these
policies and schemes. The government has been engaging with various segments
while creating a new institutional framework to take Indian healthcare
ecosystem to the next level. As part of Ayushman Bharat Mission, NHPS would
require strong partnerships among stakeholders and with this collaborative
spirit, we should be in position to make our healthcare ecosystem robust and
more inclusive,” Mr. Daljit Singh further added.

Presently, a very small percentage of the population in the country has
health insurance coverage. Out-of-pocket expenses are very high at around
60% and the new scheme is expected to help people to meet their healthcare
needs. Economic Survey 2017-18 has also flagged the issue of high levels of
Out-of-Pocket Expenses on health, which adversely affects the deprived
sections and widens economic and social inequalities.

Appreciating the government’s plan of setting up of over 1,50,000 health and
wellness centres throughout the country, NATHEALTH said that this move
along-with expanding networks of hospitals are outstanding examples of an
integrated approachtowards enabling Universal Health Coverage for the people
of the nation.

According to NATHEALTH, inadequate access to capital has been one of the
biggest roadblocks for the growth of Indian healthcare sector. Today, the
government spends only about 1.4% of its GDP on healthcare, which is one of
the lowest spends globally. There is a need to focus more on raising
investment in healthcare in the country.

The government needs to play the role of a powerful catalyst by creating an
enabling ecosystem which draws investments from both domestic and
international players to achieve the goal of Universal Health Coverage. Once
investment goes up, the government would be in a better position to push
reforms with promotional policies.

Awareness, Accessibility, Affordability, Accountability and Quality are
priorities for the healthcare sector. Digital Health plays a critical role
in driving the priority. For effective implementation, NHPS needs to be
digitally empowered in terms of collection and sharing of data.

Mr. Daljit Singh further said, “The Health Policy envisages setting up a
regulatory body-National Digital Health Authority- to govern and regulate
digital health. Going forward, for an efficient and effective mass mediclaim
scheme, NATHEALTH hopes that the Authority would be established immediately
to leverage the benefits of digital health. Digital health would be a very
powerful catalyst in realising the goal of Health for All.”

On the occasion of Ayushman Bharat Diwas- April 30th, NATHEALTH urged all
stakeholders to work in a collaborative spirit to empower and reinvent the
sector. Flexible and adaptive operating models need to be in place for
optimising non-traditional resources and partnerships. Overall, the sector
needs to move forward with an innovative mindset to focus on quality and
affordability.