Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2022 amid the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is also the sixth Budget session held since the outbreak of the pandemic in January 2020. The key elements of the Union Budget 2022 that are being intensely watched include individual income tax, Provident Fund, pensions and spending on healthcare, which has been one of the most active sectors due to growing medical claims.
“Mental ill-health can have devastating effects on individuals, families, and society, and the Covid 19 pandemic has triggered an exponential rise in mental health issues, with a large number of people reporting anxiety and depression. Therefore, the Finance minister’s announcement of rolling out a national tele-mental health program is a welcome step. As per the budget announcement, the telehealth program will be operated by a network of 23 mental health centers of excellence under NIMHANS and tech support by IIIT, Bangalore.
Niti Aayog had issued the telehealth guidelines in March 2020, which are amongst the most progressive in the world, and today’s announcement will further strengthen the telehealth ecosystem in India. Economics and mental health are intertwined, and a reduction in mental health issues will lead to a more productive and happier population,” said Rajneesh Bhandari, Founder NeuroEquilibrium, world’s first chain of dizziness & balance disorder clinics
While commenting on the Budget 2022 Dr. Rajendra Patankar, CEO – Jupiter Hospital, Pune said, “With an objective of promoting “Make in India ” the announcement on review of custom exemption being gradually phased out for medical devices, drugs and medicines wherever sufficient domestic capacity exist is a very welcome move. This will help boost ” Make in India” Or indigenous medical devices production as well as help optimise capital expenditure on medical equipment and drugs for hospitals and healthcare establishments.
A national digital health ecosystem which is proposed to be rolled out will be a game changer for storing the health information / data of public which could be harnessed to develop strategies to improve accessibility of healthcare facilities thereby improving both preventive & curative aspects of health leading to improved Global Health Security Index.
Mention on increasing Healthcare GDP spend and some more thrust on Healthcare Infrastructure development especially in Tier II and III towns along with Public Private Partnerships was expected from this Budget”.
“The budget is an excellent one for digital technologies application in the healthcare ecosystem. There is a need for seamless integration of stakeholders of industry right from pharmacy to clinicians to dietary practitioners to hospitals for effective patient management and efficient healthcare. The use of digital technologies will give birth to exponential growth of Nutraceuticals as a preventive category and also as adjuncts to optimize therapy leading to evolution of nutraceutical medicines!” said Amit Srivastava, Chief Catalyst, Nutrify Today.
Mr. Raktim Chattopadhyay, Founder & CEO, Esperer Nutrition believes, “Healthcare and infrastructure were the major focus of the budget 2022 and significant investment has been allocated for the expansion of roadways and logistics networks which will definitely strengthen the nation. As we were expecting, start-ups were given keen importance in the budget. The ECLGS credit scheme guarantee cover has been expanded by Rs 50,000 crore, which will provide collateral-free loans to stressed-out MSMEs. The Govt has confirmed support for R&D expenditure, AI, genomics, etc. which is very encouraging. We shall wait for the right spirit in the implementation of all good plans in budget 2022.”
