Out of pocket expenditure projected to fall to 35% by FY26: Health secy

"Government interventions such as increase in expenditure via schemes has led to people saving more than Rs 5 trillion", he added

Out of pocket expenditure (OOPE) for healthcare services is projected to fall to 35 per cent by 2025-26, from 44 per cent recorded in the National Health Accounts of 2021, a senior government official said here today.

Addressing a healthcare summit by Mint in New Delhi, Sudhansh Pant, Union Health Secretary, said that the fall in OOPE can be attributed to an increase in the share of government health expenditure from 45 per cent in 2021 to a projected 55 per cent by 2025-26.

“Government interventions such as an increase in expenditure via schemes has led to people saving more than Rs 5 trillion,” he added.

Calling health the topmost priority of the government, the health secretary said that Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres (AB-HWC) and Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) are the two pillars on which the government aims to move from a curative to preventive and wellness healthcare.

Announcing the renaming of AB-HWC’s to Ayushman Arogya Mandirs, Pant said that the government has introduced 12 basic screening and testing facilities including screening of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and cancer at the primary healthcare level.

“These centres also include weekly yoga classes to accommodate the wellness aspect of our policy,” he added.

Quoting government figures, the health secretary said that more than 120 million families have been covered under the PM-JAY since the scheme’s inception, at a cost of Rs 75,000 crore to the government.

The government will also spend Rs 65,000 crores to upgrade public health infrastructure over four years, under the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM).

“This includes the building of public health laboratories in every district. This is being done to ensure that our healthcare professionals should be well equipped,” he added.