10 highlights of the new National Health Policy

Here are ten important highlights of the National Health Policy 2017

-The policy aims to raise public healthcare expenditure to 2.5 percent of GDP from the the current 1.4 percent, with more than two-thirds of those resources going towards primary healthcare.

-The policy envisages providing a larger package of assured comprehensive primary healthcare through the 'Health and Wellness Centers'. It is a comprehensive package which includes care for major non-communicable diseases (NCDs), mental health, geriatric healthcare, palliative care and rehabilitative care services.

-It aims to ensure availability of 2 beds per 1000 population distributed in a manner to enable access within golden hour.

-In order to provide access and financial protection, it proposes free drugs, free diagnostics and free emergency and essential healthcare services in all public hospitals.

-The policy proposes to increase life expectancy from 67.5 to 70 years by 2025. Establish regular tracking of disability adjusted life years (DALY) Index as a measure of burden of disease and its trends by major categories by 2022.

-Reduction of total fertility rate (TFR) to 2.1 at national and sub-national level by 2025.

-Reduce mortality rate of children under 5 years of age to 23 (per 1000) by 2025 and maternal mortality rate (MMR) from current levels to 100 by 2020. Reduce infant mortality rate to 28 by 2019. Reduce neo-natal mortality to 16 and still birth rate to 'single digit' by 2025.

-To improve and strengthen the regulatory environment, the policy seeks putting in place systems for setting standards and ensuring quality of healthcare.

-The policy also looks at reforms in the existing regulatory systems both for easing manufacturing of drugs and devices to promote Make in India, as also for reforming medical education.

-The policy advocates development of mid-level service providers, nurse practitioners, public health cadre to improve availability of appropriate health human resource.