New Delhi, Feb 1: The government will facilitate setting up of daycare cancer centres in all district hospitals over the next three years and 200 of these will be established in 2025-26, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Saturday.
Presenting the 2025-26 Union Budget, her record eighth, Sitharaman said 10,000 additional seats will be added in medical colleges and hospitals next year towards the goal of adding 75,000 seats in the next five years.
She further announced that gig workers will be provided healthcare facilities under PM Jan Aarogya Yojana (PM-JAY) and this measure is likely to assist nearly 1 crore workers.
The government will facilitate setting up of daycare cancer centres in all district hospitals in the next three years, Sitharaman said.
She said, “200 centres will be established in 2025-26 itself.”
To provide relief to patients, particularly those suffering from cancer, rare diseases and other severe chronic diseases, 36 lifesaving drugs and medicines are proposed to be added to the list of medicines fully exempted from basic customs duty (BCD).
“I also propose to add six lifesaving medicines to the list attracting concessional customs duty of 5 per cent. Full exemption and concessional duty will also respectively apply on the bulk drugs for manufacture of the above,” the minister said.
Specified drugs and medicines under Patient Assistance Programmes run by pharmaceutical companies are fully exempt from BCD, provided the medicines are supplied free of cost to patients, she said.
“I propose to add 37 more medicines along with 13 new patient assistance programmes,” she said.
On adding seats in medical colleges and hospitals, Sitharaman said, “Our government has added almost 1.1 lakh undergraduate and postgraduate medical education seats in 10 years, an increase of 130 per cent.”
“In the next year, 10,000 additional seats will be added in medical colleges and hospitals towards the goal of adding 75,000 seats in the next five years,” she said.
She said medical tourism and ‘Heal in India’ will be promoted in partnership with the private sector along with capacity building and easier visa norms.
Also, broadband connectivity will be provided to all government secondary schools and primary healthcare centres, the minister said. (PTI)
