Indians still have a long way to go towards healthcare awareness and accessibility to health, at least in the semi-rural and rural areas of the country, according to the findings of a recent survey.
A huge 75 per cent of the semi-rural and rural population in India do not have access to modern healthcare within their localities. About 55 per cent of those surveyed said they had never heard of insurance while 70 per cent said they did not have a health insurance cover.
Among those aware of insurance, only 32 per cent said they had opted for insurance at some point, with a mere 28 per cent possessing health insurance for themselves or their families.
About 23 per cent relied on informal loans or borrowing to take care of hospital expenses, with 6 per cent saying they had resorted to selling assets to pay off their medical bills and a significant 53 per cent claiming they had utilised some form of savings to cover these expenses. About 45 per cent of respondents said they travelled more than 10 kms to avail the services of a doctor, according to the survey by Pay Nearby.
Titled Bharat Health Index (BHI) 2023, the survey involved 10,000-plus retailers across semi-rural and India over a month.
According to the respondents, they spent about 15-20 per cent of their yearly income on medical expenses.
However, there is a growing interest in online medical purchase as well as telemedicine consultation. About 35 per cent of respondents expressed interest in online medical purchases, and 32 per cent on telemedicine consultation, the survey said.
According to the survey, the accessibility index saw a major dip as one moved from urban to rural India. Only about 10 per cent of the rural respondents citing that they had access to healthcare within a 10km radius.
Lack of skilled healthcare providers at the last mile was a major challenge for accessibility, the survey said.
“Only 15 per cent of respondents confirmed having a doctor’s clinic or healthcare facility within a 5 km radius. In terms of medical practitioners available, while 25 per cent had access to general physicians in their area, 92 per cent lacked specialised doctors, such as cardiologists, gynaecologists or paediatricians, impacting medical care,” the survey said.
“For specialised treatment such as cancer, neurological or blood disorders, 90 per cent needed to travel to a different location for treatment, 5 per cent reported loss of a loved one due to unavailability of specialist doctors at the local healthcare facility,” the survey added.
The survey also evaluated the accessibility and convenience of medical stores at the last mile.
“A notable 52 per cent of respondents had a pharmacy within 5 km radius of their residence, making essential medicines relatively accessible. However, 85 per cent of the respondents had to travel more than 10 kms to obtain specialised medicines, indicating potential challenges for those with specific medical needs,” the survey said.
Interestingly, only 47 per cent of the respondents said they possessed a thermometer at home, while only 7 per cent had instruments to check blood pressure and blood sugar.
The survey also emphasised the urgent need for setting up a financial funding mechanism to address the escalating medical expenses at the last mile.
Reasons For No Insurance
According to the survey, the penetration of financial products, such as insurance would prove crucial in enhancing healthcare affordability and accessibility.
“Among those with insurance, 88 per cent obtained it from government or state sponsored schemes, while less than 10 per cent obtained it from private insurance providers,” the survey further said.
According to the survey, about 38 per cent cited affordability as a major hindrance, while 36 per cent mentioned uncertainty about where to buy insurance, while 24 per cent said they were unaware of the benefits of insurance.
About 32 per cent identified limited availability of health insurance providers and lack of information as the primary challenge.
This was closely followed by high premiums (28 per cent), complex documentation processes (15 per cent), limited coverage for specific healthcare needs (18 per cent), and language or literacy barriers (7 per cent), the survey said.
Anand Kumar Bajaj, founder, managing director and CEO, PayNearby said, “Over 70 per cent of India resides in rural and semi-rural regions. This survey reinforces the urgent need to scale healthcare services for the masses. More than 80 per cent of doctors, 75 per cent of dispensaries, and 60 per cent of hospitals are concentrated in urban India, leaving out marginalised population in semi-urban and rural areas to fend for themselves. While infrastructure scaling takes times, leveraging technology for distribution breakthroughs is crucial to cater to a wider audience. Reliable tele-consultation platforms and easy to use online pharmacy modules can greatly contribute.”
