The government’s ambitious draft health policy that is being given final touches targets health spend to be 2.5% of the GDP. The draft health policy also talks of about 5% of the budget money to be allocated for the purpose under this policy. Health budget in numbers Despite new initiatives such as the National Health Protection scheme, Jan Aushadhi stores to sell affordable drugs, introduction of 10 more AIIMS-like institutes and national dialysis services, health outlays have remained stagnant under the NDA government. 2016-17: Rs 33,000 crore2015-16: Rs 33,150 crore2014-15: Rs 35,163 croreTaking a clue from this development, this year’s budget could introduce a similar tax bracket. The National Health Mission (NHM) is expected to see some additional budgetary allocation though marginal in comparison as there are sustainable development goals (SDGs) to be met.

Source: Hindustan Times January 25, 2017 13:18 UTC