The primary, secondary, and tertiary healthcare tiers in India are logically arranged to fulfill distinct functions within the country’s healthcare infrastructure. Healthcare providers from the public and private sectors work together to deliver healthcare services. Notably, the private sector currently controls the majority of the Indian healthcare market, demonstrating its considerable influence over the development of the healthcare system in that nation.
Market Insights
In 2023, the Indian healthcare market grows significantly, mostly due to the thriving health tech industry, with a focus on artificial intelligence (AI) integration. The healthcare sector in India is well-known throughout the world for its broad production capabilities and ability to produce high-quality, reasonably priced generic medications. The COVID-19 pandemic brought the sector’s significance to light, highlighting its resilience and significance. The US Food & Drug Administration’s strict quality standards have been met by a large number of Indian companies that export generic products, allowing them to compete in the global generic drug market. This achievement opens up significant growth prospects for the years to come.
It is anticipated that by 2050, the population’s out-of-pocket healthcare costs will have significantly decreased due to the Indian government’s increasing commitment to healthcare. By the fiscal year 2025, the government hopes to have allotted 2.5% of India’s GDP to healthcare. It is expected that this higher proportion of government spending will help make healthcare services more affordable and accessible, improving the health of the Indian populace.
Market Segments
Given the rise in high-quality medical services, it is anticipated that the market shares for medical insurance and medical tourism will rise. There is also a growing market for companies offering medical tourism travel insurance. Given the higher capital expenditures that hospitals and other healthcare facilities are making in outpatient facilities, it is anticipated that the availability of outpatient care services will rise by more than 2%. The current market growth is partly attributed to the growing volume of consultations. General medicine, orthopedics, ophthalmology, pediatricians, gynecologists, and dentists are among the specialties that increase high consultation rates. A couple of the few emerging trends in this market are teleconsultations and the use of software to keep track of patient information.
Market Drivers
The deliberate attempt to address the widening gap between the availability of healthcare professionals at the state and federal levels and the increasing needs for healthcare has been a major force behind the Indian healthcare sector in recent years. A commitment to closing this gap is demonstrated by government initiatives like the National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions (NCAHP) Act, which was enacted in 2021, extended counseling rounds for All India Quota PG seats, and the reduction of benchmark percentiles for admissions into postgraduate degree and diploma programs. By accelerating the expansion of allied medical seats across the nation, these calculated actions hope to improve the quality of healthcare workers and satisfy the populace’s growing demands.
Key deterrents to the growth of the market
The primary impediments to the expansion of the healthcare industry in India are the financial constraints that public healthcare, especially in rural areas, faces. As a result, expensive private healthcare services are required. The private healthcare industry is expanding, but widespread accessibility is hampered by its fragmented nature and sparse presence in rural areas. The National Health Policy of 2017 outlines how this constraint disproportionately affects low-income and rural populations, as the budget allotted to the healthcare sector in FY 2023 falls short of the projected trajectory needed to reach the target public health expenditure of 2.5 percent of GDP by 2025.
Key market Trends
The growing need for sophisticated telemedicine services is a notable trend in the Indian healthcare industry. Using an innovative approach, healthcare providers can conduct audio/video consultations, issue E-prescriptions, and access electronic medical/health records (EMR/EHR) thanks to the integration of CRM software. In addition to revolutionizing domestic healthcare, the emergence of telemedicine is expected to propel the medical tourism industry by enabling remote consultations for patients from overseas. This trend represents a move in the direction of technology-driven healthcare solutions, which will improve accessibility and broaden the scope of healthcare services available in India.
The government of India is supporting the growing trend of advanced telemedicine, especially with the launch of the ‘eSanjeevani telemedicine’ service by the Union Health Ministry in 2020. Over 30 million teleconsultations had been successfully completed through the portal by March 2022. Many private players, including Apollo Group, have invested in this trend after realizing the potential for revenue. The Apollo Group provides TeleConsultations, TeleRadiology, TeleCardiology, and TeleCondition Management, among other telemedicine services. The confluence of governmental programs and private sector funding highlights the growing importance of telemedicine in revolutionizing and extending healthcare services throughout the nation.
