Health Ministry officials said the government has allocated 100 billion rupees ($1.54 billion) for the "National Health Protection Mission" for 2018/19 and 2019/20. It will be the largest public funded health protection scheme in the world," Health Minister JP Nadda said at a news briefing. The measures are Modi's latest attempt to reform a public health system that faces a shortage of hospitals and doctors. The government has also in recent years capped prices of critical drugs and medical devices and increased health funding. Still, India spends only about 1 percent of its GDP on public health, among the world's lowest, and the health ministry estimates such funding leads to "catastrophic" expenses that push 7 percent of the population into poverty each year.

Source: bd News24 March 22, 2018 11:26 UTC