Union Budget 2026–27: Healthcare industry leaders urge the government to boost public health spending, strengthen rural healthcare delivery, support innovation, expand diagnostics, and accelerate reforms to achieve universal, resilient, and inclusive healthcare across India.
As preparations intensify for the Union Budget 2026–27, leading voices from India’s healthcare ecosystem have called on the government to significantly increase public health expenditure and accelerate reforms aimed at strengthening healthcare delivery, infrastructure, and innovation. Industry leaders, hospital associations, and pharmaceutical experts believe the upcoming budget presents a crucial opportunity to address long-standing gaps in India’s health system while preparing for future demands.
The Association of Healthcare Providers – India (AHPI) has highlighted that India’s public healthcare spending continues to remain well below the National Health Policy (NHP) 2017 target of 2.5 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Despite incremental increases over recent years, India still trails several comparable developing economies in terms of public investment in health, raising concerns about sustainability, access, and quality of care.
According to AHPI, India’s healthcare system is under mounting pressure due to a dual disease burden comprising both communicable diseases and rapidly rising non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, cancer, and respiratory illnesses. This challenge is further compounded by an aging population, lifestyle-related health risks, and increasing demand for specialty, preventive, and long-term care services.
Industry leaders emphasized that the Union Budget 2026–27 should prioritize strengthening healthcare delivery in rural, semi-urban, and underserved regions to move decisively toward the goal of universal health coverage. While metropolitan areas have witnessed growth in private and corporate healthcare facilities, large sections of the population in tier 2 and tier 3 cities continue to face shortages of hospitals, trained healthcare professionals, diagnostics, and advanced treatment options.
Dr. Girdhar Gyani, Director General of AHPI, stressed that long-term investment in healthcare infrastructure is essential for India’s social and economic resilience. He noted that expanding healthcare capacity today will help prevent higher costs and productivity losses in the future.
“To secure a healthier future for India, it is imperative to invest in robust health systems today. We urge the government to substantially enhance healthcare funding in Budget 2026–27, laying the foundation for world-class and inclusive care for every citizen. Expanding infrastructure, strengthening the workforce, and enabling equitable access to quality services, especially in tier 2 and tier 3 cities, are critical to meet the evolving healthcare needs of the nation,” Dr. Gyani said.
Echoing these views, Dr. Sunil K. Khetarpal, Deputy Director General of AHPI, pointed out that healthcare demand in India is evolving faster than existing systems can support. He emphasized the importance of technology-enabled healthcare delivery, quality assurance frameworks, and hospital capacity-building initiatives.
“The upcoming budget must accelerate investments in technology-driven care, quality assurance, and hospital capacity-building. Digital health, telemedicine, and data-driven decision-making can significantly improve outcomes while optimizing costs,” Dr. Khetarpal added.
From the pharmaceutical sector, Sudarshan Jain, Secretary General of the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA), described Union Budget 2026 as a strategic moment to reinforce India’s global leadership in healthcare innovation, manufacturing, and access to affordable medicines. He urged the government to raise healthcare spending toward the NHP target of 2.5 percent of GDP by 2026–27 to strengthen the overall healthcare ecosystem.
Jain also recommended enhanced incentives for research and development, rationalization of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) structure to support manufacturing competitiveness, and the reintroduction of concessional tax regimes for new pharmaceutical facilities. Simplifying compliance requirements and streamlining regulatory frameworks were also highlighted as key enablers for faster growth and innovation.
Meanwhile, NATHEALTH President Ameera Shah called for a shift toward prevention-led, holistic, and resilient healthcare systems. She emphasized the importance of recognizing healthcare as national infrastructure and supporting it with long-term, affordable financing mechanisms.
“The Union Budget 2026–27 presents a timely opportunity to strengthen healthcare as national infrastructure through long-term affordable financing, create an NCD resilience fund by earmarking a portion of the health cess and universal CSR obligations,” Shah said.
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She also advocated for expanding access to quality diagnostics by establishing a national network of NABL and ISO-accredited reference laboratories. Improved diagnostic coverage, she noted, would play a critical role in early disease detection, better clinical outcomes, and reduced healthcare costs.
As expectations build around Union Budget 2026–27, healthcare leaders remain united in their call for decisive policy action. Increased public investment, targeted reforms, and a strong focus on equity and innovation, they argue, are essential to ensure that India’s healthcare system is capable of meeting the demands of a growing and evolving population.
