Post-Budget reaction: Dr Anil Krishna, CMD, Medicover Hospital
A bold budget that lays down a 25-year roadmap for India to become a truly successful economy. The announcement regarding the increase in healthcare-related expenditure with an increase of almost 10.91 per cent over the revised estimate of 2021-22 and 2022-23 is truly a massive move. It shows that the government has learned from the pandemic as they plan on spending Rs 39, 44,909 crore in 2022-23. Furthermore, the actions made for collaborative public health management demonstrate that the government is finally looking at healthcare R&D through expanding facilities in select ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) labs. These will be made available for research by academics from public and private medical colleges, as well as R&D teams from the private sector, to encourage joint research and innovation. All in all, it is a very well-thought-out budget that will have a positive impact on the digital and health infrastructure of the country.