PM bets for leveraging telemedicine in healthcare

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi said at the 25th Foundation Day celebration of the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) that the nation must think about applying the “Make in India” initiative in the health sector. It should think about using information technology-related tools to create healthier societies & popularizing “new models” of telemedicine. 

“The initial gains in this make me optimistic. Our domestic manufacturers have started production of PPEs (personal protective equipment) and have supplied about 1 crore PPEs to covid-19 warriors,” PM Modi said. This statement comes in the wake of the fact that India is trying to reduce its dependence on China for APIs.

“We hope that this momentum is taken forward as public health procurement is now a proven Make in India driver and investments in producing medical devices domestically are given price preference rather than being asked to match remunerative L1 (lowest bids) prices of Chinese goods,” commented Rajiv Nath, forum coordinator, Association of Indian Medical Device Industry.

According to a McKinsey report, India could save up to $10 billion in 2025, if telemedicine replaced 30% to 40% of in-person outpatient consultations and there is digitization in the overall healthcare industry.