The Indian government has unveiled an ambitious plan to establish daycare cancer centres in every district over the next three years. With cancer cases expected to rise significantly, this initiative aims to improve treatment accessibility, especially in remote areas. The budget also includes provisions for adding life-saving drugs and expanding medical education to support healthcare infrastructure. These strategic moves signal a comprehensive approach to addressing India's growing healthcare challenges.
February 03, 2025
Daycare cancer centres in every district in India a timely initiative
"The establishment of daycare cancer
centres in all district hospitals is a critical move towards enhancing
accessibility to specialised treatment." - Garima Malhotra, Praxis Global
Alliance
New Delhi, Feb 2: The Union Budget's plan to establish daycare cancer
centres in every district over the next three years is a timely initiative,
experts said on Sunday.
Key Points
1 Cancer incidence rising with
27.7% expected increase by 2025
2 Government planning 200 daycare
cancer centres by 2025-26
3 36 life-saving drugs to be
exempted from customs duty
4 Medical education expansion
with 10,000 additional seats
Cancer incidence in India is
rising, with cases expected to increase by 27.7 per cent from 2015 to 2025.
According to the 'National Cancer
Registry Programme Report' 2020, one in nine people is likely to develop cancer
in their lifetime.
The Budget move "aims to
improve access to cancer treatment and support, particularly in remote areas,
bridging a critical gap in healthcare services," said Ashok Varma,
Partner, Grant Thornton Bharat.
The Government will facilitate
the setting up of daycare cancer centres and 200 such centres will be
established in 2025-26.
Moreover, the Budget announced 36
life-saving drugs and medicines (mainly for cancer and rare diseases) to be
added to the list of medicines that are fully exempt from basic customs duty
(BCD). Another six life-saving medicines are to be added to the list, which
would attract concessional customs duty of 5 per cent.
Garima Malhotra, Associate
Partner, Healthcare and Lifesciences at Praxis Global Alliance, said that the
expansion of medical education with 10,000 additional seats and the plan to add
75,000 seats over the next five years will address the shortage of healthcare
professionals.
"The establishment of daycare
cancer centres in all district hospitals is a critical move towards enhancing
accessibility to specialised treatment. These measures, along with continued
investment in public health infrastructure, will improve healthcare access and
affordability, fostering a healthier India," she mentioned.
The Government's push for
improved access to life-saving medicines through the addition of 36 drugs to
the exempted list and enhanced support for rare disease treatments is a welcome
move.
The rationalisation of customs
tariffs for industrial goods, including incentives for domestic pharmaceutical
manufacturing, will further boost India's position as the 'Pharmacy of the
World.'
The emphasis on R&D with a Rs
20,000 crore investment in private-sector-led innovation will also accelerate
drug discovery and biotech advancements, said experts.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment