A healthy India is a responsibility, and achieving the highest standard of health is a fundamental right of every individual. Despite many of India’s remarkable achievements, including the highly successful vaccination drive in fighting the pandemic, many Indians still struggle with poor health, insufficient health infrastructure, and insufficient financial risk protection for all.
The average number of children born to a woman, also known as the total fertility rate (TFR), is projected to decrease to 1.29 by 2050, despite the recommended replacement rate being 2.21. Despite this decline, Bharat’s population is expected to reach around 1.6 billion by 2050. Bharat will require accessible and quality healthcare for all in the face of climate change-induced heat effects, which will add further pressure on the population. Therefore, achieving health equity will necessitate an important societal commitment.
Ayushman Bharat (AB) is centered around 150,000 Health and Wellness Centers (HWC) and a cashless secondary and tertiary care scheme called Pradhan Mantri – Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY), which is administered through the National Health Authority (NHA). With this, the government has transitioned from being a provider to a payer, while also acknowledging the need to justify costs. The government recognizes that providing healthcare services to 1.4 billion people is a huge task that neither the public nor the private sector can achieve alone. Currently, the government is working to empower 300 million sector workers and help them access the benefits of several welfare schemes, including insurance.
