BHUBANESWAR: In a bid to achieve a robust healthcare system that was under stress during the Covid-19 pandemic, Odisha government has proposed to spend Rs 12,624 crore for public healthcare, marking an increase of about 38 per cent (pc) over the previous year’s provision of Rs 9,164 crore.
As per the provisions made, the highest Rs 2,664 crore has been provided under the flagship Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY) to provide universal health coverage to 96.5 lakh vulnerable families with special emphasis on health protection of women.
The government has proposed Rs 2,325 crore under ‘Mukhya Mantri Swasthya Seva Mission’ for upgradation of health care facilities across the State. This apart, Rs 514 crore has been provided under family welfare scheme and Rs 652 crore under strengthening ancillary services in the health sector.An outlay of Rs 2,156 crore has been proposed under National Health Mission and Rs 312 crore under human resource in health and medical education.
A new scheme ‘Mukhya Mantri Bayu Swasthya Seva’ has been launched by the State government with an objective to provide healthcare to the patients requiring superspecialty services free of cost at the district headquarters level in four districts - Nuapada, Kalahandi, Malkangiri and Nabarangpur.
Under the scheme, senior medical professionals of government medical colleges will fly to these district headquarters with required high-end medical equipment and consumables to provide surgical care and consultations. Finance Minister Niranjan Pujari said the government is committed to ensure universal access to quality healthcare at an affordable cost.
“The budget this fiscal focuses on creation of transformative healthcare facilities apart from prioritising the expenditure on the healthcare services and medical education. The increased allocation will help develop a robust system to fight future pandemics,” he added.