{"id":64812,"date":"2026-01-21T18:27:27","date_gmt":"2026-01-21T12:57:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=64812"},"modified":"2026-01-21T18:30:14","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T13:00:14","slug":"citizen-centred-healthcare-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/21-01-2026\/citizen-centred-healthcare-india","title":{"rendered":"New Lancet Report Sets Citizen-Centred Healthcare Guidelines For India"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/Health<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Lancet Commission&#8217;s new report charts a rights-based, citizen-centred roadmap for <strong>Universal Health Coverage in India,<\/strong> aligning with Viksit Bharat 2047.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>The reforms described in the report <\/strong>promote community participation, transparency and equity &#8212; key principles of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) &#8212; aimed at ensuring high-quality, affordable care for all.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It emphasizes the <strong>urgent need to strengthen India&#8217;s public healthcare <\/strong>by integrating services across primary, secondary, and tertiary levels.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Guiding Principles of the Commission<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A transition from a facility-centric, reactive, and fragmented delivery system focused on specific diseases towards a <strong>comprehensive, coordinated, citizen-centred health system.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A transition from <strong>citizens being passive recipients<\/strong> of services to becoming <strong>active agents<\/strong> with rights who are engaged in the health system.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A transition from <strong>providing weight to only professional qualifications<\/strong> to emphasising <strong>provider competencies, values, and motivations<\/strong>, and empowering <strong>frontline workers and practitioners of Indian systems<\/strong> of medicine (eg, Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>To responsibly and ethically leverage the<strong> power of innovative technology<\/strong> to support the reimagined health system and deliver citizen-centred care.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>To <strong>explicitly acknowledge rights and health equity<\/strong> as a core value of universal health coverage and the reduction of inequities as a measure of progress across universal health coverage goals.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What is Universal Health Coverage?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It means that all people have<strong> access to the full range of quality health services<\/strong> without financial hardship.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Key components of UHC include:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Access to Care: <\/strong>Everyone should be able to obtain necessary health services when they need them.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Quality Services: <\/strong>The care provided should be effective, safe, and of good quality.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Financial Protection:<\/strong> Individuals should not face financial difficulties due to medical expenses.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>UHC <\/strong>is rooted in the <strong>universal human right to health,<\/strong> affirmed in <strong>international covenants and the Alma-Ata Declaration (1978)<\/strong>, which prioritised comprehensive primary healthcare.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Need For Universal Health Coverage in Indian Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Historical Commitment to Universal Healthcare: Bhore Committee (1943\u201346)<\/strong> reflected a clear preference for universal healthcare over insurance-based UHC.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Policy Evolution after Independence: India&#8217;s National Health Policy of 1983 <\/strong>recognized the goal of <strong>&#8220;Health for All&#8221; <\/strong>and emphasized the importance of primary healthcare and equitable distribution of healthcare resources.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Shift towards Insurance-led UHC: Welfare Schemes like Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) 2008 and Ayushman Bharat\u2013PMJAY<\/strong> institutionalised UHC but reinforced an insurance-heavy approach.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Weak Public Health System and Rising Private Dependence: <\/strong>Chronic underfinancing of primary healthcare has led to poor quality public provisioning, shortage of infrastructure and workforce.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>National Sample Survey (NSS) data show growing reliance of the poor on private healthcare, rising out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE) &amp; increased household indebtedness.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Post-Covid Realisation: <\/strong>The Covid-19 pandemic exposed inequities in insurance-based access, exclusion of informal workers and migrants &amp; fragility of hospital-centric models.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Constitutional Basis for UHC:<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The <strong>Directive Principles of State Policy<\/strong> in Part IV of the Constitution provides a basis for the right to health.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Article 39 (e) <\/strong>directs the state to secure the health of workers; <strong>Article 42 <\/strong>emphasises just and humane conditions of work and maternity relief; and <strong>Article 47<\/strong> casts a duty on the state to raise the nutrition levels and standard of living, and to improve public health.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Constitution also endows the panchayats and municipalities to strengthen public health under <strong>Article 243G<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Challenges in Adopting UHC in India<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Resource Constraints:<\/strong> India faces significant funding limitations in healthcare, with a low public health expenditure compared to many other countries. This affects the ability to provide comprehensive services.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Low public health expenditure (~2.1% of GDP), below the NHP target of 2.5%.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Infrastructure Gaps: <\/strong>Many areas, especially rural regions, lack adequate healthcare infrastructure, including hospitals, clinics, and trained personnel, making access to care difficult.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Healthcare Workforce Shortages:<\/strong> There is a shortage of healthcare professionals, particularly in rural areas, leading to disparities in access and quality of care.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Fragmented Health Systems: <\/strong>India&#8217;s healthcare system is a mix of public and private providers, leading to inconsistencies in quality and accessibility.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>And, <strong>Health is a State subject<\/strong>, while financing and flagship schemes are centrally driven, leading to uneven outcomes.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img data-dominant-color=\"c8d6d3\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"559\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image-91-1024x559.png\" alt=\"adopting uhc in india\" class=\"not-transparent wp-image-64813\" style=\"--dominant-color: #c8d6d3; aspect-ratio:1.8318737860769414;width:421px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image-91-1024x559.png 1024w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image-91-300x164.png 300w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image-91-768x419.png 768w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image-91-1536x838.png 1536w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image-91.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hindustantimes.com\/india-news\/with-public-trust-and-political-capital-india-must-seize-the-moment-for-health-reforms-robert-horton-101768936373082-amp.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>HT<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Context<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The Lancet Commission&#8217;s new report charts a rights-based, citizen-centred roadmap for Universal Health Coverage in India, aligning with Viksit Bharat 2047.\u00a0<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong> About <\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The reforms described in the report promote community participation, transparency and equity &#8212; key principles of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) &#8212; aimed at ensuring high-quality, affordable care for all.\u00a0 <\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">It emphasizes the urgent need to strengthen India&#8217;s public healthcare by integrating services across primary, secondary, and tertiary levels. <\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/21-01-2026\/citizen-centred-healthcare-india\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-64812","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64812","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64812"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64812\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":64817,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64812\/revisions\/64817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64812"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64812"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64812"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}