Debjit Sinha | New Delhi | December 31, 2020
As the economy goes into a recovery mode, the healthcare sector’s resilience in the frontlines of the fight against Covid-19 will be pivotal for restarting the engine of growth
The Covid-19 pandemic has kind of hold a mirror up to the state of the healthcare sector
The year 2020 taught us the elementary principle that ―Health is Wealth‖ as the Covid pandemic has a devastating impact on the overall economy of India and livelihoods of crores of people. The onslaught of Coronavirus showed the magnitude of the impact of the healthcare sector on the economy of our country and others. As the Narendra Modi government gears up to present Budget 2021, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman must allot an adequate Budget for the healthcare sector, which will subsequently have a considerable influence on India‘s economy.
―We continue to be cautiously optimistic – there are definitely signs of recovery, whether a V, U or an L, household savings have started to shift towards services and not only towards goods as mobility has improved. This has been the case with healthcare delivery as well where occupancies across most hospitals have returned to pre-covid levels driven by an increase in elective surgeries. The stability in this consumer sentiment, especially in Q-4 FY 21 will pave the way forward,‖ Prateek Ghosal, Chief Strategy Officer, Ujala Cygnus Group of Hospitals says.
―The year ahead will primarily be driven by the successful implementation of the vaccine, where while India‘s manufacturing facilities are a strength, the key lies in the availability of cold storage facilities, a strong tech- enabled IT network linked to Aadhar and feasible public-private participation in terms of pricing/funding of the vaccine,‖ Ghosal says.
―The Covid-19 pandemic has kind of hold a mirror up to the state of the healthcare sector. As the economy goes into a recovery mode, the healthcare sector‘s resilience in the frontlines of the fight against Covid-19 will be pivotal for restarting the engine of growth. The Covid-19 has brought the emphasis on increasing public spending, creating appropriate infrastructure in the form of adequate public hospitals, and hence, the government schemes providing subsidized loans and land for building healthcare facilities is the need of the hour. As an invaluable component of strengthening the healthcare system, the role of public-private partnership (PPP) remains crucial. There is an urgency to allot an adequate budget for the sector, which will have a considerable influence on the entire economy,‖ Rustom Kerawalla, Chairman, Ampersand, says.
