On 29th November 2021 Union Secretary, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Rajesh Bhushan released the findings of the National Health Accounts (NHA) Estimates for India for 2017-18. Â
- This is the 5th consecutive NHA report produced by National Health Systems Resource Centre (NHSRC), designated as National Health Accounts Technical Secretariat (NHATS) in 2014 by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW).
- The Out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE) as a share of total health expenditure has dropped to 48.8% in 2017-18 from 64.2% in 2013-14.
Background:
The NHA estimates are prepared based on the accounting framework of World Health Organization’s (WHOs) internationally accepted System of Health Accounts 2011.
Key Highlights:
i.The NHA estimates enable the policy makers to monitor progress towards universal health coverage and compare internationally.
ii.The 2017-18 NHA estimates show an increasing trend on government expenditure on health, and growing trust in the public health care system.
- The share of primary healthcare in current government health expenditure has increased from 51.1% in 2013-14 to 54.7% in 2017-18.
iii.The primary and secondary care accounts for more than 80% of the current Government health expenditure
Findings:
The Key Findings have shown the increasing trend in the following factors,
| Factors | 2013-14 | 2017-18 |
|---|---|---|
| Share of Government health expenditure in Total GDP of the country | 1.15% | 1.35% |
| The Share of Government Health Expenditure in Total health expenditure | 28.6 % | 40.8 % |
| The Share of Government health expenditure in Total Government expenditure | 3.78 % | 5.12 % |
| The government health expenditure in per capita | Rs.1042 | Rs.1753 |
Sector Wise Health Expenditure:
Primary and Secondary Sector
Government’s share in primary and secondary healthcare has increased while in the private sector, the share of tertiary healthcare has increased but primary and secondary healthcare showed a declining trend.
- Between 2016-17 and 2017-18, the government’s share of primary and secondary healthcare has increased from 75% to 86% while in the private sector, the share has declined from 84% to 74%.
Social security expenditure (SSE)
SSE, which includes the social health insurance program, Government financed health insurance schemes, and medical reimbursements made to Government employees has been increased from 6% in 2013-14 to 9 % in 2017-18.
- There is a 0.5% decline in foreign aid for health showcasing India’s economic self-reliance.
Out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE)
- The per capita OOPE has also been declined from Rs.2336 to Rs.2097 between 2013-14 to 2017-18.
- The decline of 50 % in OOPE for government hospitals is due to the increase in utilisation of service and reduction in cost of government health facilities in NHA 2017-18 compared to NHA 2014-15
Recent Related News:
Dr. Sivan, Chairman of ISRO inaugurated the Health QUEST Study (Health Quality Upgradation Enabled by Space Technology of ISRO) to upgrade the healthcare systems standards of India in line with the ISRO’s quality standards and best practices.
About Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW)
Union Minister – Mansukh Mandaviya (Constituency – Gujarat)
Minister of State – Bharati Pravin Pawar (Constituency – Dindori, Maharashtra)
