Parliamentary Committee on Health Presents Comprehensive Healthcare Reform Recommendations
The Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health & Family Welfare, chaired by Prof. Ram Gopal Yadav, presented three significant reports containing 463 total recommendations addressing vector-borne diseases, healthcare affordability, and chronic kidney disease management. The committee's most extensive report (176th) addresses India's healthcare affordability crisis, noting that private hospital treatment costs are five to ten times higher than government facilities, with average inpatient treatment costing approximately ₹37,858 and out-of-pocket expenditure averaging ₹34,064.
Key Healthcare Affordability and Structural Reforms
The Committee recommends immediate formulation of a mechanism to standardize and cap costs of essential treatments, diagnostics, and routine procedures across all private hospitals. It proposes expanding PM-JAY coverage to all children below five years and all senior citizens aged 60 years and above, irrespective of socioeconomic status. The Committee strongly recommends increasing Government Health Expenditure to 2.5% of GDP from the current 1.43%, and proposes a voluntary contributory insurance model for the "missing middle" population of approximately 40 crore individuals.
Chronic Kidney Disease Management Framework
The Committee proposes a dedicated National Chronic Kidney Disease Programme modeled on the successful HIV/AIDS programme, along with establishment of a National CKD Registry for systematic disease surveillance. It recommends institutionalizing screening of high-risk individuals, including mandatory biannual kidney assessment for all persons aged 20 years and above. To address critical demand-supply mismatch for kidney transplants, the Committee recommends expanding transplantation infrastructure to at least three Government medical colleges in every large State and one government medical college in every small state or Union Territory.
Addressing Healthcare Disparities and Infrastructure Gaps
The Committee identified significant rural-urban disparities in CKD care access and recommends targeted strategies to strengthen specialist and diagnostic services in rural and underserved districts. It proposes developing a district-wise CKD Performance Dashboard to monitor screening coverage, early diagnosis, dialysis outcomes, and transplant waiting lists using real-time data. The Committee also recommends launching a Kidney Health Programme for higher-risk occupations including agricultural workers, construction workers, and factory laborers.
Technology-Driven Solutions and Implementation Framework
Significant emphasis is placed on digital health infrastructure, with recommendations to mandate ABDM compliance for all public facilities and PMJAY-empanelled private hospitals. The Committee recommends using drone technology under the Namo Drone Didi Scheme for mapping larval habitats and inaccessible zones for vector-borne disease control in North-Eastern regions. For quality assurance, it recommends making NABH accreditation mandatory through a phased roadmap and establishing a National Biomedical Breakthrough Innovation Fund to support high-risk translational research in medical technology.
The Committee emphasizes the need for strict monitoring mechanisms, recommending that Regional Review Meetings of State National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme be conducted every three months and developing a standardized Health Facility Access Index to measure spatial, temporal, and financial accessibility across regions.