To meet these needs, increasing GDP spending on healthcare to 2.5% is crucial for enhancing social insurance, expanding facilities in tier-2 and 3 cities, and advancing digital health services - Abhay Soi, president, NATHEALTH

Healthcare Challenges

• India on way to $5-trn economy
• Nation needs quality healthcare
• Need of 2 bn sft of advanced healthcare infra

New Delhi: Healthcare industry body NATHEALTH on Tuesday urged the government to raise public health expenditure to above 2.5 per cent of GDP and rationalise GST for healthcare with a uniform 5 per cent rate slab.

In its pre-budget recommendations, NATHEALTH also called for the implementation of “transformative measures that focus on strengthening healthcare infrastructure and making strategic investments to address both demand and supply-side challenges”.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is expected to unveil the budget proposals for 2024-25 financial year on July 23 in the Lok Sabha. NATHEALTH President, and Max Healthcare Institute Chairman & Managing Director Abhay Soi said India has made significant strides toward becoming a global healthcare powerhouse and this has substantially contributed to GDP and job creation.

As the nation progresses toward achieving a $5 trillion economy, providing quality healthcare for the entire population is a prerequisite. Addressing healthcare challenges will require an estimated 2 billion square feet of advanced healthcare infrastructure, he added.