An opinion piece on ‘Universal Healthcare’ titled ‘The poor should get basic carefree while the affluent pay for value-adds’ contributed by our Executive Chairman, Dr. BS Ajaikumar was featured in Healthcare Radius magazine.
The opinion piece speaks on Universal Health Cover an efficient mechanism to ensure effective, equitable, and economical citizen access to needful health services. Amid the ongoing pandemic, UHC has assumed critical significance. UHC has been in vogue in many countries. While advanced nations like Switzerland, Netherlands, United Kingdom, and Canada have been running evolved versions, developing nations like Cuba, Saudi Arabia, Costa Rica, and Vietnam have made commendable progress despite multiple constraints.
Dr. Ajai in the article highlights on how the Indian healthcare sector has been grappling with many problems that prevent well-meaning healthcare schemes like Ayushman Bharat and Aatmanirbhar Swasth Bharat from delivering measurable value. Given the enormity of the rich-poor divide in the country, fragmented healthcare delivery, dearth of skilled resources, absence of a robust implementation mechanism, and lack of a holistic understanding of India’s grassroots healthcare needs, most schemes fail to deliver on their promise, despite being high on intent.