Sunday, Nov 28, 2004
Sunday, Nov 28, 2004 |
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(From left): The Chief Executive Officer of Apollo Gleneagles, V. Satyanarayana Reddy, the founder and Executive Chairman, Dr. Prathap Reddy, and the Director, Joshua Goh, at a press conference in Kolkata on Saturday. — Photo: Parth Sanyal
KOLKATA, NOV. 27. The Chairman of the Apollo Hospitals Group, Prathap C, Reddy, is keen to see India as an international brand for healthcare, saying that this would unlock the huge potential of medical tourism in India. He said hospitals should work towards building up clinical excellence as the skills of Indian doctors were recognised abroad. High costs and long waiting periods in western countries could make India a favoured destination, making health an engine of growth for the country and a major foreign exchange earner. Speaking on the occasion of one-year completion of Apollo Gleneagles Hospital here, he said while Singapore, Malayasia and Thailand had already marked their presence in this area, the demand for good medical services from the West and the AfroAsian countries was huge. "In the U.K. there are 1.2 million people on queues,'' he noted. Dr. Reddy said by March 2005 the Apollo group was set to enter the field of clinical trials for cell therapy, which would help regenerate muscle tissues in cases of atrophy. He said Apollo had already begun earning through medical BPO ventures where it was handling jobs in billing, coding and adjudication. Dr. Reddy favoured the health sector being declared as an infrastructure area, which would help investors pump in funds. About Rs. 140,000 crores was needed to meet the 80,000-gap between demand and availability of hospital beds, he said. He also revealed a plan — Bharat Swasth — that he recently presented before a Group of Secretaries for making available healthcare to all on a payment of an annual premium of Rs.150 per head. He said this would entail a Rs. 1 lakh coverage to any person in any remote corner of the country who could then access the facilities at any of the 150 Apollo-networked facilities in the country.'' Initially the persons (who would have to be the member of a cooperative) would need to contribute only 40 per cent of the premium with the remaining being paid by the Centre and the State governments. Such a scheme was already in operation for 1.8 million farmers in Karnataka.
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