New Delhi: Government expenditure on healthcare has nearly tripled over the last decade to Rs 3.85 lakh crore in 2022-23, while out-of-pocket spending by households on treatment has declined significantly, according to the National Health Accounts (NHA) estimates released by the Union Health Ministry on Wednesday.
The report showed that government health expenditure increased from Rs 1.30 lakh crore in 2013-14 to Rs 3.85 lakh crore in 2022-23, stating higher public investment in the health sector.
The share of government health spending in the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose from 1.15 per cent in 2013-14 to 1.43 per cent in 2022-23. According to the new GDP series with base year 2022-23, the figure stands at 1.48 per cent.
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The ministry said the increase in public spending has contributed to a substantial decline in out-of-pocket expenditure incurred by households on healthcare.
According to the report, out-of-pocket expenditure as a share of total health expenditure fell from 64.2 per cent in 2013-14 to 43.4 per cent in 2022-23, indicating reduced financial burden on people seeking treatment.
The report also highlighted that the share of government health expenditure in total health expenditure increased from 28.6 per cent in 2013-14 to 43.7 per cent in 2022-23.
"In per capita terms, Government Health Expenditure increased nearly 2.7 times from Rs 1,042 in 2013-14 to Rs 2,786 in 2022-23," the ministry said in a statement.
The NHA estimates noted that government spending on healthcare saw a major rise during the COVID-19 pandemic period, with health expenditure reaching 1.84 per cent of GDP in 2021-22 due to emergency response measures, implementation of Emergency COVID Response Packages (ECRP-I and II) and the nationwide vaccination programme.
During the pandemic period, out-of-pocket expenditure as a share of total health expenditure declined further to 39.4 per cent, the report said.
The share of government health expenditure in total health expenditure has increased by almost 15 percentage points, from 28.6 per cent in 2013-14 to 43.7 per cent in 2022-23. This shift underscores the important role of public financing in the health system and signals that policy efforts are moving in the right direction -- towards a more affordable, equitable and accessible healthcare system for all, the statement said.
Reducing the burden of out-of-pocket expenditure on households has been a key priority for the government, pursued through various health schemes and a sustained commitment to Universal Health Coverage (UHC), the statement said.
Between 2013-14 and 2022-23, the share of out-of-pocket expenditure in total health expenditure declined significantly by nearly 21 percentage points, from 64.2 per cent to 43.4 per cent.
Intertemporal comparisons also reveal a positive trend in the growth of Social Security Expenditure (SSE) on healthcare reflecting the government's commitment to financial risk protection and reducing health inequities, the share of SSE in total health expenditure -- which includes government-funded health insurance such as the AB PM-JAY, medical reimbursements to government employees, and social health insurance programmes -- has increased substantially from six per cent in 2013-14 to 9.9 per cent in 2022-23, the statement said.
The share of private health insurance in total health expenditure has also increased, from 3.4 per cent to 9.2 per cent, clearly indicating improved health-seeking behaviour due to awareness and the population's purchasing power.
The report further said expenditure on primary healthcare by the government more than doubled from Rs 0.5 lakh crore in 2013-14 to Rs 1.4 lakh crore in 2022-23.
The NHA estimates are prepared by the National Health Accounts Technical Secretariat under the National Health Systems Resource Centre using the internationally accepted system of health accounts, 2011 framework.
