Context

Between 2014 and 2025, India’s healthcare landscape underwent a remarkable transformation driven by focused policies, political will, increased investments, and technological advancements. These efforts aim to create a healthcare system that is affordable, accessible, equitable, and of high quality, aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goal 3 (SDG-3) and national initiatives like Ayushman Bharat and the National Health Mission (NHM).

Healthcare in 2014 – Key Challenges

• Infrastructure gaps: Severe shortage of primary health centres (PHCs), community health centres (CHCs), and diagnostic services.
• Human resources shortage: Insufficient doctors, nurses, and allied health professionals.
• Service quality: Limited and uneven access; affordability remained low.
• High Out-of-Pocket Expenditure (OOPE): Major obstacle to universal health access.

Vision Shift: From Illness to Wellness

• A shift from focusing solely on curative care to emphasizing preventive and promotive health.
• National Health Mission (NHM) acts as the policy backbone driving systemic reforms.

Key Pillars of Healthcare Transformation

1. Strengthening Primary Healthcare

• Ayushman Arogya Mandirs: Over 177,000 centres established delivering comprehensive primary care, including maternal-child health, NCD screening, and mental health services.

2. Telemedicine Expansion

• eSanjeevani: Enabled remote medical consultations.
• Tele-MANAS: Specialized tele-mental health support.

3. Maternal and Child Health Progress

• Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR): Declined by 86%, nearly twice the global average reduction.
• Infant Mortality Rate (IMR): Reduced by 73%, outperforming the global decline of 58%.

4. Addressing Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs)

• Mass screening at Ayushman Arogya Mandirs for hypertension (28 crore), diabetes (27 crore), and oral cancer (27 crore).
• Focus on cancer screenings: breast, cervical, and oral cancers.

5. Universal Immunisation & Public Health

• Mission Indradhanush: Vaccinated 5.46 crore children and 1.32 crore pregnant women.
• U-WIN Portal: Digitized vaccine tracking with 42.75 crore doses administered by May 2025.
• Diseases eliminated: Polio (2014), Maternal & Neonatal Tetanus (2015), Trachoma (2024).
• Malaria cases and deaths reduced by over 80% (2015–2023).
• Kala Azar elimination achieved in 2023.
• Tuberculosis incidence reduced by 17.7% and mortality by 21%, with missing TB cases dropping from 15 lakh (2015) to 1.2 lakh (2024).

6. Healthcare Financing & Affordability

• Government health expenditure rose from 1.13% to 1.84% of GDP (2014–2022).
• OOPE reduced from 62.6% to 39.4% during the same period.
• Free Drugs and Diagnostics Initiative: Implemented in 36 States/UTs; Tele-radiology services in 12 States/UTs.
• PM National Dialysis Programme: Benefited over 28 lakh kidney patients, saving ₹8,725 crore in OOPE.

7. Emergency Healthcare Access

• Expansion of National Ambulance Services (NAS) and Mobile Medical Units (MMUs) to reach underserved and remote areas.

8. Infrastructure & Human Resource Development

• PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM): Launched in 2021 to enhance long-term health infrastructure.
• Achievements under PM-ABHIM include:
• 18,802 Ayushman Arogya Mandirs
• 602 Critical Care Hospital Blocks
• 730 District Integrated Public Health Laboratories
• Human resources strengthened by adding 5.23 lakh health workers, including 1.18 lakh Community Health Officers (CHOs), who serve as key links between community health workers and doctors.

Conclusion – Path to Universal Healthcare

India’s healthcare evolution from 2014 to 2025 marks a significant shift from treating illness to promoting wellness, supported by innovative policy frameworks, digital health technologies, and enhanced financing. This progress lays a robust foundation to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and meet the health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.