Low budget allocation for healthcare: It is primarily the responsibility of the states, says finance secretary

Finance Secretary TV Somanathan said on Monday that health care is primarily the responsibility of the states. budgetary allocation to the sector Still at a low of 1.3 per cent of GDP.

He said the Center provides some “cross-cutting health infrastructure” and also spends on the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, which helps people from the lower strata of society access healthcare.

According to the budget proposals for FY 2013, the government is planning to spend around Rs 83,000 crore on health care, as it did in FY 2012, while the pandemic continues.

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In a post-Budget industry interaction with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, lobby grouping CII President TV Narendran said spending on healthcare, though higher than before, is 1.3% of GDP, while expecting the government to spend more. should spend. 3%.

Mr. Somanathan said, “The figures should be seen primarily in the context of the responsibility of the state government.” “Whenever we discuss targets on the percentage of GDP to be spent on various sectors like health, education, defense – we have to remember that any growth requires an increase in the tax-to-GDP ratio. And I request cooperation to grow the industry too,” he said.

He said the government’s emergency credit-linked guarantee scheme announced after the pandemic has also given a window of Rs 50,000 crore for credit supply to the health sector and asked the corporate sector to take full advantage of it.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said Healthcare needs a lot of attention Not only from the government but also from the private sector.