Healthcare and medical education reforms in India: What lies ahead?

Since India became a republic in 1951, there has been steady progress on all fronts of human and economic development. India has matured as the largest democracy in the world and and also earned the reputation of being one of the fastest growing economies during last two decades. However, the country remains challenged with several pressing issues which includes maintaining good health for second largest population in world. As a signatory of Alma Ata declaration, provision of primary health care has remained a priority area in the planning process. Although the targets of “Health for all by 2000” were missed, several programs are under implementation targeted towards achieving MDGs (Millennium Development Goals). Recent years shall be marked as very eventful from the perspective of health care reforms in India. For the first time a basic framework for Universal Health Coverage (UHC) has been proposed. A brief review of the programs and policies rolled out recently, provides us an insight into the future direction of the dynamic health system of India.