India continues to have one of the most privatised health systems in the world. India’s public health expenditure in terms of percent of GDP (1.15 percent) spent on healthcare places India at 12th from the bottom, in the company of countries such as Myanmar, Haiti, South Sudan, Timor-Leste and Pakistan.
THE union ministry of health and family welfare (MoHFW) supported National Health Systems Resource Centre (NHSRC) has recently published (August 2016) the National Health Accounts for 2013-14. While summary data for expenditures on health are published regularly, a rigorous estimate of health expenditure in the country is being published after a gap of ten years (after 2003-04). While overall estimates have been published, the document promises that “policy interpretations of the data will follow including estimation of expenditures by diseases, age and gender in the coming year”. Health expenditure relate data is an important planning tool as it provides information regarding the direction of public policy towards provision of healthcare and also provides insights into the financial burden faced by households while accessing healthcare services.