Change in States' Health Budgets during the Pandemic
The pandemic created the need for expansion of health services, both in terms of infrastructure and equipment, as well as human resources. It also exposed many underlying deficiencies in India’s public health systems. However, simultaneously, the economic crisis led to a fall in revenue and transfers for states, constraining their ability to spend. How did state spending on health change between 2020-21 and 2021-22? This metric shows a comparative picture of the change in state health budgets over this period (as well as the trend in total health budgets over the last few years). States like Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Manipur saw a rise in health spending of over 20%; many others saw a smaller increase, and Jharkhand and Mizoram saw a decline.
Click/Tap on State to see its five-year trend on this metric
Source: Detailed Demands for Grants, Annual Financial Statements, Budget at a Glance, for various states
Notes:
1. 'Health budget’ here includes the total budget of the state’s health-related departments (such as Department of Health and Family Welfare, Department of Medical Education etc.) Additionally, it includes major expenditure on health undertaken by other state departments (such as Departments of Labour, Public Works, etc.); and budgets on health for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
2. For Punjab, the budget documents of 2021-22 are unavailable online and hence it could not be included in the state-wise comparison.
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Copyright: Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability (CBGA) 2021
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