Healthcare cost will go down in next 10 years: Narayana Health founder

Healthcare in India is poised to witness a revolution, and the cost of healthcare will go down in the next five to 10 Years. India will become the first country in the world to dissociate healthcare from affluence, according to cardiac surgeon and founder of Narayana Health Devi Prasad Shetty.

Delivering the 14th Foundation Day lecture at the ICFAI Foundation for Higher Education (IFHE) in Hyderabad on Thursday (September 19, 2024), on ‘Transforming the Healthcare through Digital Health’, he said health insurance is critical, and with new policies brought out by IRDA hospitals can become insurance providers.

“This will be a game changer and transform the way healthcare is delivered in the country. The existing health insurance in the country has some flaws as all the stakeholders do not trust one other. If hospitals provide insurance, there is no conflict among the stakeholders, and the interests of healthcare providers and patients are aligned,” he said, adding that Narayana Health has launched insurance to cater to the ‘missing middle class’.

He called for developing infrastructure to handle simple surgeries, lacking in most developing countries resulting in 17 to 18 million deaths annually, and said preventive care must be available to every person close to their place of work or home.

According to IFHE Chancellor, economist and former Governor of Reserve Bank of India C. Rangarajan, a combination of universal healthcare and insurance could be appropriate for the country.

He called for a scheme where the government has an important role to play and for providing some medical facilities free of cost. He also noted that the primary health center system should be improved, especially in rural areas, and when healthcare provider provides insurance services, it would reduce unnecessary costs and transactions.

Published - September 21, 2024 01:53 pm IST