NEW DELHI: In a bid to move towards ‘Health for All’, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday said that two key initiatives - the Free Drug Service and Free Diagnosis Service - would be taken up on priority, besides plan to set up four more AIIMS like institutions.
Jaitley proposed an allocation of Rs 39,237.82 crore to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for 2014-15 against the allocation of Rs 37,330 crore for 2013-14.
Of this, the National Health Mission will get Rs 21,912 crore, department of AYUSH will get Rs 1,069 crore, a provision of Rs 726 crore for Health Research and an outlay of Rs 1,785 crore for the department of AIDS Control.
Jaitley said that besides a provision of Rs 1,956 crore for PMSSY, additional needs for human resources and medical education have been articulated and the outlay of the scheme has been kept at `2,578.88 crore.
To achieve universal access to early quality diagnosis and treatment to TB patients, Jaitley said that two National Institutes of Ageing will be set up at AIIMS, New Delhi, and Madras Medical College, Chennai. A national-level research and referral institute for higher dental studies would be set up in one of the existing dental institutions.
similar hospitals in all states
Maintaining that it is a matter of great satisfaction that all the six new AIIMS at Jodhpur, Bhopal, Patna, Rishikesh, Bhubaneswar and Raipur have become functional, Jaitley said a plan to set up four more AIIMS at AP, WB, Vidarbha and Poorvanchal in UP is under consideration.