Chennai: Tomorrow Tamilnadu goes to polls for both Assembly (by-elections) and Lok Sabha elections. While there has been a lot of policies and new schemes in healthcare sector released by the present State and Central governments, experts point out a few key issues that require attention.
In the budget released a few months ago, only 2.2 per cent of resources has been allotted to healthcare.
Speaking about the spend, Tamilnad Kidney Research Foundation (TANKER) founder-trustee, Dr Georgi Abraham, said, “For a population of 134 crore, the allocation is very less and needs a boost. We are short of funds for treating communicable and non-communicable diseases in our country.”
Citing China as an example, the doctor stated that they have gone ahead in terms of offering treatment and emphasised that the country should adopt a few measures from the neighbour.
He further said, “We need to have better preventive strategy to keep diseases at bay for which we need to have better healthcare spend.”
Although there has been several private companies supporting research activities, People’s Health Movement – India strongly advocates against the move and a statement said, “Eliminate the interference by multi-lateral and bilateral financing agencies and corporate consultancy organisations from all national health policy formulation and strategy development. Ensure that Indian research institutions have alternative national sources of funding and do not have to become dependent on them.”
Rather, they propose the idea of giving a boost to the number of generic medicine outlets. “The government should prepare a generic medicine policy that would make it mandatory for manufacturers to prominently display the generic name (rather than brand) as main labeling for all products, and for doctors to use generic names in all prescriptions, while ensuring easy availability of generic medicines,” added the statement.
Dr Georgi further shed light on the laboratory segment in India and emphasised on the need to regulate. “Since the labs are not standardised, the results they provide could be inaccurate. The government standardised blood banks due to the occurrence of human errors, but left diagnosing facilities untouched,” he added.
Analysing from the beneficiaries’ point of view, Consumers Association of India (CAI) Chennai chairperson, Nirmala Desikan explained the need to implement Tamilnadu Clinical Establishments Act. “The government can avoid additional expenditure incurred like repeating the test when second opinion is sought, if the law is complied with,” she said.
Owing to growing expenses, health insurance has become mandatory for the ailing population. On it, she added, “There must be a help desk available in all hospitals to help patients.”