Union Budget 2026: Experts call for tax-funded Universal Health Care, enhancing public hospitals

Health experts on January 27 have urged the government to introduce taxfunded Universal Health Care and boost resources at government hospitals in the upcoming Union Budget 2026The experts also highlighted the lack of funds to in public health care institutions to deliver adequate services to a large number of patients and stressed the need to expand PMJAY to include outpatient careldquoWe advocate taxfunded Universal Health Care with a basic health package for all citizens and to increase public health allocation to 255 per cent of GDP strengthening government hospitals and human resourcesrdquo said Dr Vinay Aggarwal past National President Indian Medical AssociationldquoThe government should reform PMJAY to include outpatient care realistic package rates DBT copayments and timely reimbursementsrdquo he addedThe expert also urged the government ldquoto provide GST exemption on lifesaving equipment consumables and all vaccinesA recent report by The Lancet Commission stressed that the public sector healthcare system is the backbone for achieving the universal health coverage goal An accompanying Comment paper examined Indiarsquos progress towards universal health coverage and highlights structural weaknesses in the health systemIt particularly highlighted fragmented governance poor coordination across levels of care health services organised around institutions rather than citizens and persistent gaps in quality equity and continuity of care as major barriers to UHCThe paper suggested that Indiarsquos path to universal health care requires multiple programmes and noted that operating in silos can weaken accountability and service continuityHealthcare delivery must remain facilitycentred rather than focused on patient journeys and longterm care needs It also mentioned that weak referral systems and poor integration between primary secondary and tertiary services limit efficiency and outcomesThe study stressed that policy intent alone is insufficient without institutional capacity to execute reformsldquoWhile over the last few years the government has increased the allocation for healthcare in its budget the continued prioritisation on capacity building has often left public healthcare facilities with insufficient funds to deliver adequate services to the large number of patients that they serverdquo said Aditya Banerjee Member at Medical Technology Association of India MTaIldquoA deliberate shift in the public procurement criteria from the lowest upfront price to the best longterm value for the overall healthcare system is essential for delivering better patient outcomes for every Rupee spentrdquo he added Banerjee said that it will help avoid the spiralling healthcare budgets that today is becoming unsustainable in many developed economies of the worldThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever