Charge of the new brigade

June 11 saw a new team at the helm. Jagat Prakash Nadda was sworn in as the union minister of health and family welfare. Anupriya Patel and Prataprao Jadhav also took their respective oaths as ministers of state for health. Nadda and Patel are not new to the health ministry. Nadda held the health portfolio during the Modi government’s first term before he took over as the BJP’s working president in 2019. Patel has been minister of state for health from 2016 to 2019.

The team has an important role to play. While India’s healthcare system may be lauded for its excellence, affordability, and advanced infrastructure, making it a prominent destination for medical tourism, there is still a long road ahead.

The Center’s spending on healthcare continues to be one of India’s lowest priority sectors, with central and state governments assigning it the minimal resources. According to a recent report by the Center for Social and Economic Progress (CSEP), the share of healthcare spending fell from 2.59 percent of the total budget in FY18 to 2.29 percent in FY22, coming down further to 1.75 percent in FY24. In the interim budget for FY25, the government has allocated 1.89 percent of its total expenditure to the healthcare sector. The full budget for the year will be presented in July this year. This is not likely to be close to the targeted 2.5 percent.

The private sector is not shying away from making investments. The healthcare sector has been witnessing record investments for the past few years. In just five months of 2024, the industry has secured private equity and venture capital investment of over USD 1 billion. It saw over USD 4.5 billion in investments across 19 deals in 2023, a 220-percent rise from the last year. In 2022, the sector attracted USD 1.4 billion across 15 deals. Following the pandemic, the PE and VC investors see a surge in the substantial demand for healthcare services and expect it to persist and even escalate in the foreseeable future. They see the projected growth of the hospital sector as an opportunity for high returns.

The MedTech industry is in an era of evolving complexity. The ever-increasing number of regulatory requirements, plus the continuous evolution and divergence of standards, alongside the rapid integration of technologies, such as AI and GenAI, have created a challenging path forward for the space. The use of AI and other advanced technologies in MedTech has led to the development of regulations that target the use of automation. Regulatory experts now fulfill a key role in the design of product hardware and software. Harmonization of MedTech quality and regulatory regulations and standards needs the complete support of the powers that be.

The spotlight is on the trio to deliver on the healthcare promises made in their manifesto for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections!