Watch: Budget 2024 | What’s in it for health sector??

The Union government has continued its emphasis on tackling non-communicable diseases and allocating funds for research in the healthcare sector, with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on July 23 announcing customs duty exemptions on three cancer treatment drugs — Trastuzumab Deruxtecan, Osimertinib, and Durvalumab.

The total outlay for the health sector was ₹89,287 crore, amounting to 1.85% of the budget expenditure, marginally up from 1.76%, and ₹79,221 crore in the revised estimate for budget 2023-24. This remains below the 2% mark for health outlays from FY18 to FY22.

The Health Ministry has been allocated ₹90,958.63 crore in the 2024-2025 budget, an increase from ₹80,517.62 crore in the 2023-24 revised estimates. The budget allocation for the AYUSH Ministry has been increased from ₹3,000 crore to ₹3,712.49 crore.