Analysis of Public Health Act

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GS-III
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Health
S&T

Analysis of Public Health Act

Context: CoVID and Public Health Act is a highly important topic for all the 3 stages of UPSC Examination i.e. Prelims, Mains and Interview. It is also important for Essay writing.

The Public Health Act was suggested by the report of the parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs. It was done as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
National Health Profile 2019 data showed that there were an estimated 0.55 government hospital beds for 1,000 people.
Prolonged underinvestment in public health infrastructure thus left millions seeking help from a highly commercialized private sector with little regulatory oversight.
In the rural areas, the care facilities are even weaker and even the urban people migrated in rural areas. Hence the situation was even worse.
Considering all these distortions, the panel has called for an omnibus law that will curb profiteering during such crises and provide robust cashless health insurance.
India has committed itself to covenants like the SDGs, but continues to evade making the right to health a full legal and justiciable right under the National Health Policy.
The Committee observed the absence of insurance cover for many and oversight on hospitals.
While the panel is right to view this as a breach of trust, one of the pandemic’s impacts has been a staggering rise in premiums, especially for senior citizens, of even up to 25% of the insured value.

Way Forward

Legal reform must provide for a timebound transition to universal stateprovided health services under a rightsbased, nonexclusionary framework, with States implementing it.
Private arrangements can be an option. COVID19 has exposed the dangers of excessive reliance on private tertiary care.
The corrective lies in raising public spending to the promised 2.5% of GDP on public facilities that are universally accessible.

For more COVID and Public Health Act related Articles: Click the below

1. Coronavirus explained

2. Healthcare analysis in India

3. House panel moots law to keep a check on private hospitals

Source: TH

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