Increase public health care budget in Maharashtra Activists

    Mumbai, Feb 28 (PTI) Health care activists in
Maharashtra have demanded an increase in the public health
budget by one-and-a-half times and implementation of a central
government's legislation which provides for capping treatment
rates in private hospitals.
    The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed loopholes in the
system and several people died as they could not get proper
medical attention, a group of activists, who have come under
the umbrella of 'Jan Arogya Abhiyan', told reporters here on
Saturday.
    The budget session of the Maharashtra Legislature will
begin on Monday.
    "The public health budget should be increased by one-
and-a-half times so that there are assured healthcare services
in remote and rural areas," activist Ulka Mahajan said.
    She blamed poor maintenance of the public health
system and lack of adequate staff for the death of 10 newborn
babies in a fire at the Bhandara district hospital last month.
    For 2020-21, the Maharashtra government planned to
spend Rs 1,350 per person on health, but in reality, it has
been inadequately spent, she claimed.
    Compared to it, Goa spends Rs 6,091 while other small
state like Himachal Pradesh spend Rs 3,768, she said.
    "Though the approved health budget of Maharashtra for
2020-2021 was Rs 17,288 crore and there was a supplementary
budget of Rs 3,069 crore, (total Rs 20,357 crore), only 50 per
cent of the allocated health budget was actually spent till
this month," Mahajan claimed.
    The Clinical Establishments (Registration and
Regulation) Act, enacted by the Centre with an aim to cap
treatment rates in private hospitals, should be effectively
implemented in the state, Thane-based health activist Girish
Bhave said. PTI ND
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(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)