Excessive healthcare is a problem on the rise in India: World Bank

The World Bank has warned that excessive healthcare is emerging as a serious problem in India. As per the bank, people with private health insurance are two to three times more likely to be hospitalized than the national average.
The bank is of the view that many of these medical protection policies result in only marginal benefits and can actually harm the patients, leading to unnecessary suffering, especially among the weak and elderly. The situation may aggravate as many more people will be able to afford healthcare as the government steps up medical coverage for the poor. It suggested India to urgently build in checks against this hazard, especially as it sets aside an increasing share of limited public resources for medical insurance.
The warning from the bank comes amid concern expressed by Health Minister Harsh Vardhan over “corruption” in regulatory institution Medical Council of India (MCI) and the “nexus” of doctors and diagnostic centres, resulting in patients being prescribed unnecessary tests.

Month: Current Affairs - July, 2014