Expert take on Budget 2021: Focus should be on expansion of high-quality healthcare, says GSK Velu

Below is an article by Trivitron Healthcare Group CMD, where he elaborates on what the Health sector expects from Budget 2021 and what should be government’s priority in bringing the economy back on track.

It has been a year of major economic turmoil. The Healthcare industry was at the forefront and is now, playing an important role in the war against the pandemic. The Union Budget 2021 is going to be the most anticipated event, especially for the healthcare sector. The expectations from the budget this year is a lot higher and different.

As things stand currently, it is amply clear that the growth of the Indian economy is substantially dependent on Healthcare and diagnostics.
Given the fact, the pandemic has changed the dynamics of the healthcare industry. Allocation towards healthcare in India has been a challenge in the past and the current situation reiterates the need to increase public spending on healthcare.

In such a situation, healthcare infrastructure should be prioritized so that production of indigenous healthcare equipment and medical technologies can increase.

The budget must be designed keeping in mind the requirements of the Atma-Nirbhar Bharat. Significant allocation must be reserved to boost indigenous manufacturing & research in healthcare. Also, provisions in the union budget must focus on incentivizing local manufacturing of medical devices to give an impetus to the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

Further to this, budget 2021 can prepare feasibility gap funding (VGF) options to further attract private sector investors in Tier 2 and 3 cities by focusing on Public-Private Partnership (PPP), and strengthening indigenous manufacturing of medical devices.

India needs an efficient solution to meet the challenges of its healthcare sector, especially high public expenditure, and therapeutic technology provides the most efficient solution for this. Therapeutic technology solutions will certainly help in creating a comprehensive and integrated healthcare ecosystem in the country and will help in providing patients, access to high-quality and cost-effective care.

The budget needs to focus on the expansion of high-quality healthcare with the potential to make healthcare more affordable and accessible by using technology to reach the grassroots level.

((The writer is Dr. GSK Velu, Chairman & Managing Director, Trivitron Healthcare Group))