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January 31: Budgeted healthcare expenditure, by Centre and State governments, stood at 2.1 per cent of the GDP in FY23, as against 2.2 per cent (revised estimates) in FY22 and against 1.6 per cent of FY21, the Economic Survey said.
According to it, the share of expenditure on health in the total expenditure on social services, has increased from 21 per cent in FY19 to 26 per cent in FY23 (BE).
“The share of expenditure on social services in the total expenditure has been around 25 per cent from FY18 to FY20. It increased to 26.6 per cent in FY23 (BE),” the Survey mentions.
The social services expenditure witnessed an increase of 8.4 per cent in FY21 over FY20; and another 31.4 per cent increase in FY22 over FY21, being the pandemic years, which required enhanced outlay, especially in the health and education sectors.
While the social sector expenditure outlay of the Centre and State governments was Rs 12.8 lakh crore in FY19, it has increased to Rs 21.3 lakh crore in FY23 (BE).
Health Expenditure Estimates
According to the survey, the National Health Account (NHA) for FY19 - the latest available account - highlights rising importance of public healthcare and social security in ensuring universal health coverage.
The NHA estimates show there has been an increase in the share of Government Health Expenditure (GHE) – which includes spending under all schemes funded and managed by Union, State, and local governments including quasi-Governmental organisations and donors in case funds are channelled through Government organisations - in the total GDP to 1.3 per cent in FY19 from 1.2 per cent in FY-14 .
Additionally, share of GHE in Total Health Expenditure - current and capital expenditures incurred by government and private sources including external funds - has also increased over time, standing at 40.6 per cent in FY19, substantially higher than 28.6 per cent in FY-14.
Overall, for FY19, total health expenditure for India is estimated to be ₹5,96,440 crore (3.2 per cent of GDP and ₹4,470 per capita).
The social security expenditure on health, which includes the social health insurance programme, government-financed health insurance schemes, and medical reimbursements made to government employees, has increased from 6 per cent in FY14 to 9.6 per cent in FY19; indicating that “citizens are better equipped and better provided in terms of healthcare at their doorstep making it more accessible”.
The Out of Pocket Expenditure (OOPE) as a percentage of total health expenditure has declined from 64.2 per cent in FY14 to 48.2 per cent in FY19.
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