Health Policy Issues and Health Programmes in ... - Amazon S3

Health Financing in India: Some IssuesExternal FundingThe Macro-economic Commission on Health has recommended that the world’s low- andmiddle-income countries, in partnership with high-income countries, scale up the access of theworld’s poor to essential health services. The report further highlights that high-incomecountries should resolve that lack of funds should not be the factor limiting the provision ofhealth services to the world’s poorest people. But the mere addition of funds for health carefinancing may not suffice. Rather, new but basic economic features, such as economicleadership, financial accountability, community partnership, must be interwoven with adequatefinancing to solve the key health problems, which continue to exist. In the case of India,external aid from different sources provides some added financing of health care; however, it isfraught with many problems, including financial sustainability.ReferencesGovernment of India. 1983. Statement of Health Policy 1983. Ministry of Health & Family Welfare,Government of India, New Delhi.Government of India. 2001. Draft Health Policy 2001. Ministry of Health & Family Welfare,Government of India, New Delhi.National Institute of Health and Family Welfare (NIHFW). 2001. Development of Health Insurancein India: Current Status and Future Directions. NIHFW.Sachdeva, Nirupama and B B L Sharma. 2002. Presentation on Draft National Health Policy 2001.New Delhi, NIHFW (Mimeo).Sharma, B B L, T Bir, Sushma Sharma, and G P Devrani. 2001. A Study on Willingness andEconomic Capacity to Pay for Health Care Services. New Delhi, NIHFW.World Health Organization. 2002. Executive Summary of Report of the Commission for MacroEconomics and Health. Geneva: WHO General Assembly.137