India Has Lowest Health Spending Among BRICS Nations

Bangalore: India has the lowest health spending as a proportion of gross domestic product (GDP) among BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa). However, the overall number seems a little better in the country because of the contribution from the private sector. The government has confessed to low health allocation, which is one of the major reasons for high infant and maternal mortality rates in the country, as reported by TNN.

As per the Economic Survey 2013 data, India spends approximately 4.1 percent of GDP on health, while China and Russia, which form the low spenders among the 11 countries identified in the government document, spend at least a percentage point more. At 2.6 percent only Indonesia shows a poorer allocation among the countries, while South Africa and Brazil come in the 9 percent range. Thus, this puts India in the worst performance slot among the BRICS nations.

It was noted that the expenditure in Brazil and South Africa is almost close to the average in numerous developed countries like Norway, Australia, and the UK. However, the U.S. has a health spending estimated at 17.6 percent of GDP.

India’s health spending would have been even grimmer if it wasn’t for the private sector. The private sector’s spending in the nation is more than double the government’s spending. As per experts the absence of government healthcare provokes people to spend money.

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