Digitisation of data can improve healthcare in India: CEA

Hyderabad: Digitisation of data available with the government can go a long way in improving the quality of healthcare in India, said an expert.Prof. Krishnamurthy Subramaniam, Chief Economic Advisor, Government of India, participating in a session “Shaping India’s role in global healthcare - A Political and an Economic Perspective” along with KT Rama Rao (KTR), Working President (TRS), Biotechnologist and Policymaker on the sidelines of BioAsia 2019, said: “Digitisation of data can help healthcare in India from a ‘curative’ phase to ‘preventive’ level thereby reducing the out-of-the-pocket expenses as compared to other countries.” 

He said, “Though India has leap frogged ahead of several developing nations, quality of healthcare is still a bane though the government’s support for healthcare in India as part of its GDP is on the higher side compared to other developing countries. With the ever-increasing demand for quality healthcare picking up rapidly, lot of uncertainties have crept in due to intervention of private players both in the form of drugs and hospitals.”

To a question by KTR on how Centre’s regulatory policies are stifling innovation; the CEA said, “Digitisation of data available with the government when shared with private enterprises in a secured mode will help the firms engaged in healthcare to innovate drugs competitively (price wise) and qualitatively.” He went on to add, “Depending on the progress and stage reached by the innovating companies, government can incentivise the manufacturers through relaxing the regulatory requirements.”

“Innovation in a public good like healthcare, education and security needs clusters and technology can play a critical role in public-private participation through digitization of health records,” the CEA said and added, government should look at methods of incentivizing firms that practice philanthropic research.”