Insurance premiums surpass health budget

IN a stark indicator of India's shifting healthcare landscape, individual health insurance premiums have now exceeded the combined central government allocation for the Department of Health and Family Welfare and the Department of Health Research.

- VISMAY BASU @New Delhi

An analysis of annual reports from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India and corresponding Union Budget documents shows that while insurance premium collections briefly dipped in the immediate post-pandemic years (2021-22 and 2022-23), they have since surged past the national health budget. Even when related spending by other ministries—such as Defence and Labour—is taken into account, India's total public health expenditure remains low: just around 2% of the Union Budget and 1.5% of GDP, falling short of the 2.5% target set by the National Health Policy.