Health and India\'s Development Challenge
Contents: Acknowledgements. Acronyms. Introduction. 1. Health and economic development. 2. Disease burden in India. 3. Policies and programmes for health development in India. 4. The current health scenario in India. 5. Pattern of health financing in India. Conclusions. Glossary. Bibliography. Index.
Health is a public good that has to be provided to everyone. It has direct correlation with national income and is a determinant of economic development. There is a close relationship between health and poverty. The marginal productivity of health is very high for the poor. The interplay between disease and education is huge. And so on. India has the largest number of people suffering from TB and the economic costs of TB in India are estimated to be Rs. 12,000 crore and a loss of over 10 crore productive days. HIV/AIDS might spell a loss of over 16 million lives in India over the next 20 years. Approximately 1.72 million children die each year before reaching their first birth day in India, which is one of the greatest wastes of human potential in the country. Apart from the communicable diseases, the burden of non-communicable diseases creates significant economic effect on families, communities and society by hindering economic development and increasing poverty.
Despite the large gains the health status, many part of India are still in early part of health transition. Because of the difference among states in health development, the poor continue to suffer widely. Health problems are diverse in the tribal areas which ultimately jeopardize their overall development. Though the size of the health care sector appears to be impressive, the distribution is lopsided.
Health is a public good that has to be provided to everyone. It has direct correlation with national income and is a determinant of economic development. There is a close relationship between health and poverty. The marginal productivity of health is very high for the poor. The interplay between disease and education is huge. And so on. India has the largest number of people suffering from TB and the economic costs of TB in India are estimated to be Rs. 12,000 crore and a loss of over 10 crore productive days. HIV/AIDS might spell a loss of over 16 million lives in India over the next 20 years. Approximately 1.72 million children die each year before reaching their first birth day in India, which is one of the greatest wastes of human potential in the country. Apart from the communicable diseases, the burden of non-communicable diseases creates significant economic effect on families, communities and society by hindering economic development and increasing poverty.
Despite the large gains the health status, many part of India are still in early part of health transition. Because of the difference among states in health development, the poor continue to suffer widely. Health problems are diverse in the tribal areas which ultimately jeopardize their overall development. Though the size of the health care sector appears to be impressive, the distribution is lopsided.
