“The health of the people of this country is the top priority of the Modi government and we will focus on strengthening preventive strategies so that people adopt positive and healthy lifestyles and remain healthy,” said Union Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan, who took charge on Monday and cycled to his office.
The Minister added that maintaining good health is as much the responsibility of an individual as it is the government’s duty.
“Everyone has to ensure that they undertake some form of physical activity each day and follow a disciplined lifestyle, which is supplemented by the intake of balanced food,” he said.
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‘More accessibility’
Speaking about the Central government’s flagship insurance policy Ayushman Bharat, Dr. Harsh Vardhan said: “We will consider more easy accessibility, and expanding eligibility criteria, to include those poor and vulnerable people who have been left out from the current PMJAY (Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana) list. Also, efforts are being made for empanelling more private hospitals.”
He added that, “We will make Ayushman Bharat-PMJAY, and Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs), into a people’s movement. More than 18,000 HWCs have become functional. The government will take up the programme to the next level with an expanded package of services, availability of drugs, and point of care diagnostics and tele-medicine facilities. The focus will be on consolidating both the streams of Ayushman Bharat.”
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Eliminate TB
Dr. Harsh Vardhan also laid emphasis on the elimination of Tuberculosis (TB) from India by 2025, and said that the government will also take concerted and time-bound actions to eliminate Leprosy, Kala-azar, and create a roadmap for an essential devices list, and a separate policy for medical devices focusing on their accessibility and affordability to the masses.
“Strengthening medical education is a priority,” added the Minister, stating that he would suggest creating a common working group comprising the Health Ministry and the Department of Science and Technology for research and innovation in the health sector by converging the resources and potential of both the Ministries.