ROAD AHEAD The healthcare scenario in the country today points towards increasing awareness of diseases and their treatment. Universal Healthcare The 'Jal Jeevan Mission' (Urban) was launched to achieve universal health was announced in the Union Budget 2021. The mission's goals include universal water delivery to all 4,378 urban local bodies, 2.86 crore residential tap connections, and liquid waste management in 500 AMRUT cities. It will be carried out over five years at the cost of Rs. 2,87,000 crore (US$ 39.41 billion).
Enabling Policies-100% FDI in Hospitals, Private Equity and Venture Capital Investments The government's decision to open its borders to dollar money should reassure investors interested in investing in India's healthcare sector. With a favourable foreign direct investment (FDI) policy for hospitals, we could see foreign investors acquiring majority ownership of our facilities.
Under the automated procedure, 100 per cent FDI is currently permitted in hospitals. Soon, this is expected to get much traction in this arena. Recently, private equity funds, generalist asset managers, tech-focused funds, and corporate buyers have expressed interest in this market. Only a few private equity firms had specialised healthcare teams a decade ago, but the situation has changed dramatically, with healthcare investing becoming a viable option. Ayushman Bharat Ayushman Bharat scheme was designed to offer universal health coverage and financial risk protection for all citizens and provide excellent and inexpensive necessary health care. Over 75,500 Ayushman Bharat-Health and Wellness Centres (AB-HWCs) were functioning in India as of April 2021. The government is also planning to establish 1.5 lakh Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres by December 2022. National Nutrition Mission The Union Cabinet approved the National Nutrition Mission (NNM) to monitor, supervise, set targets, and guide nutrition-related interventions across ministries. Every year, the initiative aims to reduce stunting by 2%, undernutrition by 2%, anaemia by 3%, and low birth babies by 2%. Over 100 million individuals are expected to benefit from this programme, implemented across all states and districts.
15
