We may soon have private trains in India. Some public sector banks and power corporations could also switch over to private hands in the near future. Privatisation may be the magic pill to solve our problems in many sectors, but it does not seem to be so in the case of healthcare. Thanks to Covid-19, the public healthcare sector is witnessing new, major reforms. Government hospitals are getting a much-needed infrastructural boost. Governments are also capping the cost of Covid testing and treatment at private facilities. This has had a direct impact on the Covid mortality rate in India.
Now, consider the situation in the West. The less the government interferes with the private healthcare sector, the more the Covid damage witnessed. While the cost of Covid testing in the US is around $50-100 on an average, there are cases of people being charged as much as $2,300 just because governments refuse to regulate the prices. The average cost of remdesivir for a typical Covid patient is around $3,100. By comparison, countries that have regulated private healthcare and also possess a robust public healthcare system have done well in the face of the pandemic.
India still has a long way to go. Investing in hospital infrastructure alone will not create a sustainable public health system. Substantial investments are required in research, education and development. Tamil Nadu, for instance, has begun works to construct 11 new medical colleges, which is a step in the right direction. But investing in better salaries for government practitioners and grants for research work are equally important. It is also important to revive India’s public sector vaccine production units. As PM Narendra Modi had said, India must work towards self-reliance in every field, including medicine. And that will come only through public-funded institutions built for public good instead of profits.