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The rising disease burden and out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE) on treatment in India have further deepened health disparities. The non-profit Jan Swasthya Abhiyaan has raised serious questions regarding the health report of the 80th round (2025) of the National Sample Survey (NSS), describing it as an ‘incomplete picture’ and demanding comprehensive reforms.
The survey presents health services from a predominantly hospital-centric perspective, ignoring important aspects of public health such as prevention, health promotion and primary health services, the organisation said.
According to the Abhiyaan’s Gaurang Mohapatra and Ritu Priya, the survey did not include the total OOPE on out-patient department services, while the data was collected for it. This is considered to be a major analytical shortcoming.
The report also revealed that about 13.1 per cent of the people reported disease over a 15-day period. However, information regarding why many of these people did not seek treatment and why they did not get treatment is not available. Experts say that this deficiency hides the real condition of people deprived of health services.
According to the survey, the burden of disease among the elderly is increasing rapidly. About 44 per cent of people over the age of 60 reported some form of illness. At the same time, there is a double burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases in the country, with diseases like diabetes and hypertension increasing rapidly.
Despite this, the hospitalisation rate is only 2.9 per cent, indicating barriers to access to health services.
The document also revealed the increasing dependence on private health services. In rural areas, 58 per cent and in urban areas, 65 per cent of patients seek treatment in private hospitals. The reasons for this have been cited as lack of government health services, difficulty in access and quality problems.
Due to this, the burden of expenditure on treatment has also increased. The average cost of hospitalisation is Rs 34,064, while in government hospitals it is Rs 6,631. The median expenditure has been recorded at Rs 11,285 and Rs 1,100 respectively.
Although maternal health has improved and 96.2 per cent of deliveries are now taking place in institutions, postnatal care still remains weak in rural areas.
The Abhiyaan said that all these facts show that the goal of universal healthcare in India is still far away. The organisation has demanded that the government increase public spending on health to at least 3 per cent of GDP, strengthen primary health services, regulate the private sector and make free medicines and tests available to all.
The organisation says that unless transparent data and concrete policy steps are taken, it will be difficult to achieve the goal of “health for all”.
