Govt health spending triples, households pay less

NEW DELHI: India’s government health expenditure tripled over the decade to 2023‑24, while the share of healthcare costs paid directly by households fell, according to the National Health Accounts estimates released by the Union Health Ministry.

Government spending rose from ₹1.30 lakh crore in 2013‑14 to ₹4.14 lakh crore in 2023‑24. Meanwhile, out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE) declined from 64.2 per cent to 42.7 per cent of total health expenditure, a fall of 21.5 percentage points. The household share edged down from 43.4 per cent in 2022‑23.

The government’s share of total health expenditure increased by 14.9 percentage points over the decade. Per capita government health spending climbed from ₹1,042 to ₹2,959. Public expenditure on primary healthcare reached ₹1.53 lakh crore, supporting services such as preventive care, disease screening, essential medicines and diagnostics through facilities including Ayushman Arogya Mandirs.

The estimates also recorded growth in social security spending on health, which rose from six per cent of total health expenditure in 2013‑14 to 11 per cent in 2023‑24. Private health insurance’s share increased from 3.4 per cent to 10.2 per cent.

The ministry attributed the changing financing pattern to measures including Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, free drugs and diagnostics initiatives, the National Dialysis Programme, Jan Aushadhi and AMRIT pharmacies.