A QUICK TAKE: Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia (left) having a word with Deviprasad Shetty of Narayana Hrudayalaya at the inauguration of Asha Dinesh Institute for Advanced Surgery, in Bangalore on Tuesday. — Photo : K. Gopinathan

Bangalore: The Union Government is considering extending subsidy to health insurance schemes to improve the healthcare delivery system, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia said here on Tuesday.

Inaugurating the Asha Dinesh Institute for Advanced Surgeries at the Narayana Hrudayalaya, Mr. Ahluwalia hinted that the Government was looking at bringing in a national health insurance system that would be subsidised by the state.

He said the Union Government would increase the public expenditure on health from 0.9 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to at least two to three per cent. "The total expenditure on health by the State and Union Governments is a meagre 0.9 per cent of the GDP. It has been decided that this figure will be doubled or trebled in the 11th Five Year Plan, which would come into effect next year," Mr. Ahluwalia said.

This increased expenditure could go into upgrading and expansion of government hospitals and health centres, which provide free and subsidised treatment to poor patients, and on subsidising health insurance for all patients.

"We can improve the healthcare system by either putting all the money in the public hospitals which provide subsidised care or also look into the option of a health insurance policy, which is subsidised by the State. This will, in turn, lead to accountability of hospitals. The issue of how much should go into expansion and how much should be spent on subsidising health insurance for patients in under consideration of the Planning Commission," he said.

"Most of the spending on healthcare is being done by the people, which amounts to almost five per cent of the GDP, than the State or Union Government, which has to change," Mr. Ahluwalia said.

A national health insurance system would allow poor patients to have access to specialised care, he said.

The Planning Commission Deputy Chairman said in the case of public healthcare, leaving things to the market might not yield the best results. This was especially true of the U.S., wherein healthcare is driven by the most modern technology but the healthcare outcome is bad.

The Asha Dinesh Institute of Advanced Surgeries is funded by K. Dinesh, co-founder of Infosys and Chairman of the Akshara Hastha Trust, and his wife, Asha Dinesh, to create a centre of excellence for organ transplantation. They have contributed Rs. 6 crore for the project.

Surgery at affordable cost

Deviprasad Shetty, Chairman and Managing Director of Narayana Hrudayalaya, said liver transplantations, which normally are done at a cost Rs. 30 lakh would be done at the centre for Rs. 3 lakh, so that it would be affordable to many people. The institute would conduct heart, lung, kidney and liver transplants.

Bone marrow transplants are already being conducted at the hospital.

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