No health cess in new National Health Policy: Govt

NEW DELHI: The new National Health Policy unveiled by the Centre has rejected earlier proposals to introduce a “health cess” to scale up the public investments in health care and make health a “fundamental right”.

The new policy which was approved by the Union Cabinet yesterday aims at providing “assured health services to all” and also proposes free drugs, diagnostics and emergency care services in all public hospitals.

“The talks of introducing a health cess is wrong. There is no such thing mentioned in the new policy. There is no question of introducing health cess,” Union Health Minister J P Nadda told reporters when asked why the proposal was dropped.

The earlier draft National Health Policy 2015 had said that the Government would explore the creation of a health cess on the lines of the education cess for raising the necessary resources.

“Other than general taxation, this cess could mobilise contributions from specific commodity taxes – such as the taxes on tobacco, and alcohol, from specific industries and innovative forms of resource mobilisation,” the earlier draft had said. (AGENCIES)

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here