{"id":4258,"date":"2026-10-14T04:02:50","date_gmt":"2026-10-14T04:02:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kingmakersiasacademy.com\/current-affairs\/?p=4258"},"modified":"2026-10-16T04:19:40","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T04:19:40","slug":"indias-health-care-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kingmakersiasacademy.com\/current-affairs\/indias-health-care-system\/","title":{"rendered":"India\u2019s health-care system\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<table style=\"font-size: 16px; font-style: normal;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<blockquote><p><b>SYLLABUS: Health<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>General Studies \u2013 : II <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector\/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.\u00a0 <\/span><b>\u00a0\u00a0<\/b><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><b>IN NEWS:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> India\u2019s problem of overtreatment, overmedication<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>QUESTION: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The coexistence of overtreatment and undertreatment reflects the structural inequalities in India\u2019s health-care system. Discuss.(250 words)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>ANSWER: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India\u2019s healthcare system is characterized by a stark paradox: the simultaneous existence of <\/span><b>overtreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (unnecessary diagnostic tests, over-medication, unwarranted surgeries) in the commercialized urban sector and <\/span><b>undertreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (lack of basic primary care, delayed diagnoses, unaddressed mortality) among rural and low-income populations. This dual crisis is a direct reflection of structural inequalities embedded in health financing, governance, and infrastructure distribution across the country.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>1. Structural Determinants Driving the Paradox<\/b><\/h2>\n<h3><b>A. Financing &amp; Expenditure Disparities<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Low Public Spending (1.3% to 1.5% of GDP):<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Inadequate budgetary allocation starves public health facilities of doctors, diagnostics, and essential drugs, leading to <\/span><b>undertreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for marginalized groups dependent on state care.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Dominance of Out-of-Pocket Expenditure (OOPE):<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> OOPE accounts for a significant portion of total health spending. High financial barriers force low-income households to delay care (<\/span><b>undertreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), while affluent classes spend excessively on non-essential healthcare (<\/span><b>overtreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>B. Public-Private Sector Skew<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Commercialization of Private Care:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> With the private sector accounting for over $65\\%$ of hospitalizations, profit-driven models lead to supplier-induced demand. This results in <\/span><b>overtreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Underserved Public Sector:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Overburdened public hospitals lack basic infrastructure and workforce, resulting in long waiting times, rationing of care, and early discharge of unstable patients (<\/span><b>undertreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>C. Absence of Gatekeeping &amp; Weak Primary Care<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Distorted System Architecture:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> India\u2019s health infrastructure prioritizes tertiary care over primary care.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Impact:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The absence of a referral mechanism allows affluent urban patients to bypass primary levels for minor ailments, leading to specialist-driven <\/span><b>overtreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Conversely, rural populations lack functional Primary Health Centres (PHCs), leading to unmanaged conditions (<\/span><b>undertreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>D. Geographical and Workforce Asymmetries<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Urban-Rural Divide:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Nearly 70 % of medical infrastructure and specialists are concentrated in urban areas where only 30 % of the population resides.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Impact:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Urban centers develop dense, competitive private setups practicing defensive medicine (<\/span><b>overtreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), while rural hinterlands face a severe deficit of medical professionals (<\/span><b>undertreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>2. Socio-Economic Dimensions of the Health Divide<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Gender Inequalities:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Women in low-income and rural households frequently suffer from <\/span><b>undertreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> due to lower intra-household priority (e.g., unaddressed anemia and reproductive health issues). Conversely, high rates of elective hysterectomies in private setups reflect commercial <\/span><b>overtreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Caste and Class Marginalization:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Vulnerable communities (SC, ST, informal workers) face systemic barriers\u2014geographical isolation, financial vulnerability, and discrimination\u2014leading to high rates of treatable mortality (<\/span><b>undertreatment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Information Asymmetry:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Patients lack the technical awareness to judge necessity, leaving low-income groups vulnerable to under-servicing and middle-to-high-income groups vulnerable to exploitation and over-investigation.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>3. Existing Government Initiatives &amp; Limitations<\/b><\/h2>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><b>Initiative<\/b><\/td>\n<td><b>Objective<\/b><\/td>\n<td><b>Key Challenge \/ Gap<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><b>Ayushman Bharat \u2013 PM-JAY<\/b><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Secondary &amp; tertiary insurance for poor families<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Focuses heavily on hospitalization rather than outpatient primary care<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><b>Health &amp; Wellness Centres (HWCs)<\/b><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Strengthen primary care and early detection<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Personnel shortages and drug stock-outs persist in remote areas<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><b>National Health Mission (NHM)<\/b><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rural infrastructure and maternal health<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Regional disparities in state-level implementation and funding<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><b>Clinical Establishments Act<\/b><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Regulate standards in private facilities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Weak enforcement and low adoption rates across several states<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2><b>4. Way Forward<\/b><\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Increase Public Allocation:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Step up public health spending to <\/span><b>$2.5\\%$ of GDP<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (as recommended by the National Health Policy 2017) to ensure universal access to free essential diagnostics and medicines.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Mandate Standard Treatment Guidelines (STGs):<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Enforce evidence-based clinical protocols across both public and private sectors to curb unnecessary procedures and over-prescribing.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Strengthen Primary Healthcare Gatekeeping:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Rebalance funding toward Health &amp; Wellness Centres to detect chronic conditions early, preventing undertreatment in rural areas and over-referral to urban tertiary hospitals.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<blockquote><p><b>PYQ REFERENCE UPSC 2021<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8220;In order to enhance the prospects of social development, sound and adequate health care services are essential needs. Discuss in the context of India.&#8221; (15 Marks, 250 Words)<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><b>SOURCE: <a href=\"https:\/\/epaper.thehindu.com\/ccidist-ws\/th\/th_international\/issues\/209034\/OPS\/GH8GKHJEF.1+GS5GLL2QQ.1.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Hindu epaper &#8211; India\u2019s problem of overtreatment, overmedication<\/a><br \/>\n<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SYLLABUS: Health General Studies \u2013 : II Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector\/Services relating to Health, Education, 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