Union Budget 2025: Health experts hope for less GST on medical goods, better funding for R&D, inclusion in PMJAY from age 60

Stakeholders from the healthcare sector, specifying their expectations from the upcoming Union budget, sought higher budget allocation for the sector; reduction in Goods and Services Tax (GST) and import duties on critical medical equipment and supplies; lower treatment costs for patients; and easy accessibility to various schemes introduced by the government.

Experts in the healthcare sector said that increasing healthcare spending to 2.5% of the GDP is essential in order to strengthen infrastructure and expand access, particularly in underserved areas, even as they called for enhanced access to health services through improved Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs).

“This investment will enable the establishment and upgrade of facilities while advancing preventive care initiatives like immunisation drives and health awareness programmes to address health challenges at their root,’’ Bhanu Prakash Kalmath S.J., partner, Grant Thornton Bharat, a professional services firm, said.

There is also a growing demand to reduce the GST rate on health insurance premiums and hospital supplies to reduce the financial burden on households. However, according to the Central government, out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE) on health has declined in recent years.

Sameer Bhati, director of Star Imaging and Path Lab Private Limited, noted that the diagnostics sector has high hopes for financing healthcare and improving accessibility.

“The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the value of diagnostics in detecting and managing disease early. Yet, two-thirds of diagnostic facilities are geographically concentrated in the cities, which deprives rural communities,’’ Dr. Bhati said.

He noted that transformative diagnostics were fundamental to driving healthcare agendas. With 0.7% of its GDP spent on R&D — compared with the global average of 2.2% — investments in research could bring in transformative technologies, including AI-driven diagnostics and gene-based testing for precision and efficiency, Dr. Bhati said.

Speaking for the healthcare and pharmaceuticals sector, Kinjal Shah, senior vice president and co-group head of corporate ratings, ICRA Limited, said that to boost investments in the hospitals sector, tax incentives for private sector investments in modernising medical facilities and developing greenfield hospitals in rural areas were key requirements.

The group is also seeking increased allocation towards, and price increases under, the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) scheme, considering rising inflation in medical costs.

Stating that India possesses immense potential for innovative collaborations that could propel the country to become a manufacturing hub for medical devices, Hariharan Subramanian, MD, Siemens Healthcare Private Limited, cautioned that India’s dependence on imported medical devices highlighted the urgent need to strengthen the country’s innovation ecosystem.

Volunteers in Agewell, an NGO working for the rights of the elderly, in their feedback from senior citizens noted that this cohort had sought the inclusion of medical consultation and pathology tests in health insurance coverage; discount cards for the purchase of medical accessories and services; reduced GST on products and services often used by senior citizens, including adult diapers, medicines, and equipment such as wheelchairs and walkers; and the inclusion of senior citizens in the age group of 60-plus years in the PMJAY.