Union Budget 2021: PM Aatmanirbhar Swasth Bharat Yojana Launched; 137% Hike In Health Spending
The Union Budget 2021 of post-Covid India is focused on healthcare. Nirmala Sitharaman, Finance Minister of India, on Monday, announced an expanded emphasis on Health, allocating 2.83 Lakh Crore in the Union Budget 2021, which is a 137% increased healthcare spending than the previous fiscal year.
The Finance Minister also introduced a new Centre-sponsored Health system to the health and well-being area by the name PM Aatmanirbhar Swasth Yojana. The plan aims to strengthen the Indian healthcare system further. The scheme has an outlay of Rs. 64,180 crores over 6 years in addition to the National Health Mission. According to the Finance Minister, the scheme will develop capacities of different care health systems on different levels. In addition, it is expected to make the existing institutions strong while creating new institutions to take care of detection and cure of new emerging diseases like coronavirus and others.
The Aatmanirbhar scheme is primarily based on 6 pillars namely Health and Well-Being, Inclusive Development for Aspirational India, Physical and Financial capital and infrastructure, Innovation, R&D, and Reinvigorating Human Capital.
Some of the Health and Well-Being focused features of the PM Aatmanirbhar Swasth Yojana are -
- Support for 17,000 rural and urban wellness centres.
- Establishing critical care units in 602 districts and 12 govt institutions.
- Setting up health labs in all districts and 3382 public block units in 11 states.
- Setting up of 17 health emergency centres and 2 mobile hospitals.
- Strengthening National Centre for Disease control - its 5 centres and its urban units.
- Expansion of the integrated Health portal to all states & UTs.
- Setting up a regional WHO centre office, 9 biosafety level 3 laboratories, 4 regional National Institute of Virology.
- Operationalisation of 17 Public Health units and strengthening of 33 existing units at points of entry - 33 airports, 7 seaports and 11 land crossings.
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Disclaimer: This article is issued in the general public interest and meant for general information purposes only. Readers are advised not to rely on the contents of the article as conclusive in nature and should research further or consult an expert in this regard.
