Proposed national health policy favours private sector, reluctant to increase public health expenditure
The initial euphoria around the proposed national health policy seems to be fading ever since the document was placed in the public domain for comments. The draft National Health Policy, 2015, (NHP 2015) is being introduced 13 years after the last policy was drafted.
The primary aim of the policy is to strengthen and prioritise the role of the government in shaping the healthcare system. The draft policy also assures improving health status of the population, reducing out-of-pocket expenditure on healthcare, and ensuring universal availability of free, comprehensive primary healthcare services, including essential drugs and diagnostics. It also proposes to ensure access to affordable secondary and tertiary care services. The draft is open for comments and suggestions till February 28. But public health experts have already pointed out a multitude of problems with the document.
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