Unsurprisingly, the COVID-19 pandemic took centre-stage during the presentation of the 2021 Union Budget by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. “The preparation of this Budget was undertaken in circumstances like never before,” she said in opening remarks to Parliament. “We knew of calamities that have affected a country or a region within a country, but what …
India’s lacklustre health budget “may have affected how far people were shielded from the COVID-19 outbreak” according to the latest “Commitment to Reducing Inequality Index 2020” published by Oxfam. India’s total government spending on health equated to four percent of the overall government budget, according to the report. This is just a quarter of the …
The imposition of an increased tobacco tax has seen companies take a hit in the wake of the 2020-21 Union Budget. Proposals made included raising the national calamity contingent duty (NCCD) on various tobacco products, though excluding bidis. For smoking material for cigarettes and pipes, an increase has been proposed to sixty percent compared to …
Tobacco tax: Will public health or smugglers benefit? Read More »
New Delhi, February 3, 2020: The Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, in the 2020-21 Budget statement announced an additional five percent health cess on imports of medical devices. In the current scenario, India imports over seventy percent of its medical devices with a fourth of them from the US. Medical device imports rose by 24 …
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented India’s 2020 Union Budget over the weekend, her second. Whilst it has won praise from Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan, some in the healthcare sector have expressed dissatisfaction. How much did the Union Budget allocate the health sector? Among the main takeaways of the 2020 Union Budget for …
The recent Bihar tragedy has highlighted fatal loopholes in the much-neglected Indian public healthcare sector, which is crying for government attention. The deaths of over 150 children could have been averted if Bihar’s healthcare infrastructure had adequate facilities. Against this backdrop, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will be presenting her first budget and public health …
Almost 70,000 people leave military service every year in India, with health needs to be met. To help with the cost of treatment, the government launched the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) in 2003 to expand access to healthcare for veterans and their families. But budgetary issues mean beneficiaries are missing out. This year’s interim …
Veterans go without medicines thanks to cash shortages Read More »
When you go to vote this time, do consider health as one of the biggest benefits of democracy. When thinking about democracy and its advantages, positive effects on health are often not the first thing that comes to mind. Yet new research published in The Lancet suggests democracy plays a bigger role in better health …
Health For Polls: How democracy leads to better health Read More »
The Modi government’s Union Budget for the fiscal year 2017-18 was presented by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on February 1. Jaitley announced a number of steps to address the plentiful problems facing India’s healthcare system. However, critics said that there were only paltry increases in funding following a year of severe cuts – a “nominal” …
Health budget: Making progress or playing it safe? Read More »
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