Thirteen new medical colleges and hospitals will come up in Bihar and with their completion within next 3-4 years the State will have altogether 26 such medical institutions. Of the 13 present medical colleges, eight are owned by the State Government, three by private parties and two: Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences and AIIMS are autonomous. Of the 13 medical colleges coming up MoU has been signed with the Centre for five at Jamui, Buxar, Madhubani, Sitamarhi and Siwan while the Centre has already given its approval for three more at Purnia, Chhapra and Samastipur.
Bihar Health Minister Mangal Pandey said at Madhepura the medical college and hospital was under construction after the name of Karpoori Thakur. This hospital at the cost of Rs 781 crore will be operational by March next. Another in East Champaran was also under construction while a dental college will come up at Rahui in Nalanda district with 100 bed hospital. One private medical college has got approval at Madhubani. “The courses of MBBS will be carried out in all these medical colleges once they are complete. All these medical colleges will have hospitals attached with them,” said Pandey and added that a 106 bed super specialty eye hospital was also being setup in Patna.
The construction of the new medical colleges will push up the medical education in Bihar and the new hospitals will be helpful to the patients in the State who usually go to Patna or out of Bihar or treatment, the Minister hoped.
The health scenario in Bihar had not been very healthy with sub-standard education and very little medicare facilities. “The situation has changed gradually and healthcare is now available everywhere with free medicines at the Government primary health centres and the district hospitals. For the past few years the number of patients approaching these centres has increased manifold,” Pandey added.
The poor health situation in Bihar was mirrored in the report of National Health Accounts 2014-15 and uploaded on Union Health Ministry’s website which said that per capita Government spending on health in Bihar was lowest in the country. The Government spending was merely Rs 338 per capita per year in Bihar whereas it was Rs 2016 in Himachal Pradesh and even in neighbouring Jharkhand it was Rs 480. The household burden on medical spending in Bihar was reported to be Rs 1685 per year.
Pandey admitted that Government spending was lowest in Bihar but claimed that during the past two years situation has improved a little and now the spending has increased to nearly Rs 500 per capita per year.
The Minister announced that Bihar will launch Centre’s ambitious Ayushman Bharti Yojna to 1.08 crore families from August 15. Under the scheme, announced in the Union Budget, Rs 5 lakh health insurance on assurance mode will be extended to the beneficiaries and State Health Society has been identified as nodal agency to carry out the scheme. The beneficiaries will enjoy freedom of treatment anywhere in the country in the empaneled hospitals.