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Inaugurating ASSOCHAM National Summit on Public Health Initiatives : PPP Model here on today,  the Minister said that the Health Ministry was discussing this proposal with the Commerce and Industry Ministry as to how land can be allocated for creation of proposed medical parks.

Dr. Ramadoss said “currently, only 10% of health related equipment are produced by domestic industry and 90% are imported.  After these proposed medical parks are set up, the government intends to reverse the trend in the sense that 90% of the health equipment that are currently imported would be manufactured in these parks and India imports only 10% of its health equipment requirement”.

“In addition, the Health Ministry would shortly be enacting Clinical Establishment Act for which a detailed cabinet note has already been moved and after due deliberations, the draft Clinical Establishment Bill would be placed in the Parliament.  We hope that the proposed enactment will see the light of the day latest by mid of 2007”, said the Minister.

He claimed that with this enactment in place, all the nursing homes, clinical establishments will have to obtain licences from a regulatory mechanism as provided in the Act to provide best and standardised health services.  The enactment will also ensure and put in place certain standards and uniform laboratory tests which all the nursing homes and clinical establishments will have to abide by to provide safe health services to all, added the Minister.

Dr. Ramadoss also said that ever since he took over charge of Health Ministry, its Annual Budget has gone up to over Rs. 12,000 cr. per annum as against less than Rs. 6000 cr. in the past and it would be his endeavour to further escalate the proportion of the government allocation to the health  services.

The Minister also said that the UPA government would make it mandatory to all medical students to serve the countryside for at least 2 years to give them exposure of rural India as also effectively serve the rural masses to ensure health for all by 2010.

IRDA Chairman, Mr. C S Rao in his address said that insurance companies would have to play a large role in future to provide health insurance which at present is at less than 2%.  The government would encourage competition for health insurance particularly among its state owned companies and their counterparts in the private sector.

Speaking on the occasion, ASSOCHAM Health Committee Chairman, Dr. B K Rao urged the government to liberaliase its current health rules and regulations to ensure establishment of large scale hospitals across the country through private sector initiatives.  Public private partnership if adopted effectively will ensure larger participation of private companies in government’s initiatives to provide health for all at reasonable cheaper rates, added Dr. Rao.

ASSOCHAM President, Mr. Anil K Agarwal in his welcome address sought decanalisation of health services and larger role of private sector health players to enable country achieve its dream so that health is provided to all and particularly those that are below poverty line.