Healthcare budget: 157 new nursing colleges on the cards, drive to end sickle cell anaemia by 2047

Centre marginally increases health outlay from Rs 86,200 crore to Rs 89,155 crore, but lower allocation for capital spend

Written by Anonna Dutt

New Delhi | Updated: February 2, 2023 10:55 AM IST

4 min read

Union Budget, Union Budget 2023, medical colleges, State medical colleges, Nirmala Sitharaman, Indian Express, India news, current affairs

The overall health outlay stands at 2.1 per cent of the GDP, inching towards the government’s aim of increasing healthcare spending to 2.5 per cent of the GDP by 2025.

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Increasing the FY24 healthcare budget to Rs 89,155 crore from the previous year’s estimate of Rs 86,200 crore, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Wednesday also announced a plan to set up 157 new nursing colleges in co-location with the existing 157 medical colleges established since 2014.

The 157 medical colleges were established in three phases covering 39 aspirational districts under a centrally-sponsored scheme, along with existing district or referral hospitals.

Must Read | Union Budget 2023: What is sickle cell anaemia; can it be eliminated?

“The setting up of 157 nursing colleges is a welcome step as there is a huge shortage of qualified nurses in our country, much more than doctors,” said Ravi Wankhedker, former president of the Indian Medical Association.

But he added that there is a shortage of teachers in nursing colleges which the government needs to look into before establishing new colleges.

Nursing unions and doctors also flagged the unavailability of infrastructure in existing nursing colleges.

Must Read | Union Budget 2023: What are the challenges of meeting Sickle Cell Anaemia goals? Maharashtra shows the lag between promise and reality

The Finance Minister also announced a mission to eliminate sickle cell anaemia by 2047. The programme will include awareness, counselling and universal screening of seven crore people aged up to 40 years in affected tribal areas.

The overall health outlay stands at 2.1 per cent of the GDP, inching towards the government’s aim of increasing healthcare spending to 2.5 per cent of the GDP by 2025.

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The budget estimates, however, show a decline in allocation for capital expenditure in health, with lower allocation for key health infrastructure programmes.

The estimate for health capital expenditure has reduced by nearly Rs 332 crore (to Rs 5,300.34 crore) for FY24 from FY23. The allocation for one of the flagship schemes of the government — Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Infrastructure Mission — fell to Rs 645.8 crore from the previous estimate of Rs 978 crore.

Must Read | Total outlay for healthcare rises, but fall in capex

The utilisation of the fund had been low, with the revised FY23 estimate standing at Rs 281.6 crore. The mission focuses on strengthening health and wellness centres, setting up critical care blocks and creating surveillance units.

There was a significant decline in allocation for Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojna — from Rs 10,000 crore to Rs 3,365 crore.

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With Covid-19 case numbers low for nearly a year, the allocation for health insurance for healthcare workers under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan package fell from Rs 226 crore to Rs 0.01 crore.

This budget saw an increase in allocation for a flagship government programme, the National Digital Health

Mission.

With the mission to set up a cloud-based database of health records gaining ground — over 10 crore ABHA accounts have been created — the allocation to the programme increased to Rs 341 crore from the previous year’s Rs 200 crore.

Union Budget 2023: All you need to know

Anonna Dutt

Anonna Dutt is a Principal Correspondent who writes primarily on health at the Indian Express. She reports on myriad topics ranging from the growing burden of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and hypertension to the problems with pervasive infectious conditions. She reported on the government’s management of the Covid-19 pandemic and closely followed the vaccination programme. Her stories have resulted in the city government investing in high-end tests for the poor and acknowledging errors in their official reports. Dutt also takes a keen interest in the country’s space programme and has written on key missions like Chandrayaan 2 and 3, Aditya L1, and Gaganyaan. She was among the first batch of eleven media fellows with RBM Partnership to End Malaria. She was also selected to participate in the short-term programme on early childhood reporting at Columbia University’s Dart Centre. Dutt has a Bachelor’s Degree from the Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication, Pune and a PG Diploma from the Asian College of Journalism, Chennai. She started her reporting career with the Hindustan Times. When not at work, she tries to appease the Duolingo owl with her French skills and sometimes takes to the dance floor. ... Read More

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