VIJAYAWADA: Public health experts, retired bureaucrats, and civil society leaders came together on Sunday to demand that health be recognised as a fundamental right and to oppose the privatisation of government medical colleges in Andhra Pradesh.
The conference on “Privatisation of Medical Colleges and Analysis of Andhra Pradesh Health Budget” was held at Makineni Basavapunnaiah Vignana Kendram in Vijayawada, jointly organised by Praja Arogya Vedika (PAV), Jana Vignana Vedika, and the Kendram.
Dr PV Ramesh, retired IAS officer and former Health Secretary of Andhra Pradesh, said successive governments had failed to strengthen the public health system and had instead handed over critical services to corporate control.
He cited Kerala’s health model as an example, warning that over-commercialisation had driven basic healthcare out of the poor’s reach. He criticised the transfer of Chittoor Government Hospital to Apollo Hospitals and the decision to run ten new medical colleges under Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs).
He also condemned the collection of crores in capitation fees and allocation of seats without merit.
Budget analyst Dr David Sudhakar noted that the World Health Organisation recommends allocating 6% of GDP to healthcare, but India’s health expenditure remains below 1.9%. Andhra Pradesh, he said, has not crossed 1.3% of state GDP in the last eight years. He highlighted the acute shortage of staff in government hospitals and medical colleges, questioning how quality care could be ensured in such conditions.
Dr MV Ramanayya, Praja Arogya Vedika (PAV) State President, criticised the self-financing model introduced through GOs 107 and 108, saying it deprived students from poor and marginalised backgrounds. He added that the present coalition government had failed to fulfil its promise to repeal these orders.
Praja Arogya Vedika State General Secretary T Kameshwara Rao warned that the Parivar Pehchan Patra model would allow private players to sell 50% of seats, pushing fees up to Rs 20 lakh and reducing reserved quotas.
The conference unanimously passed a resolution seeking enactment of a Right to Health Act, halting privatisation of government medical colleges, increasing health budget allocations, recruiting required staff, and ensuring public control over health institutions.