The Union Health Minister J P Nadda today said the National Health Mission (NHM) is vital for supporting states in improving their healthcare systems and it would help strengthen services in backward districts.
 

Chairing the fifth meeting of the Mission Steering Group of NHM here, he said health and wellness centres in the country are expected to provide preventive, promotive, rehabilitative and curative care for a package of 12 services, which includes care in pregnancy and child birth, family planning and trauma. "The Prime Minister's announcement of the heightened focus on aspirational districts also provides us with significant leverage point to address long persisting inequities and development lag in these districts. This will be strengthened through NHM," Nadda said.

During the meeting, attended by Union minister of state for Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri, Ministers of State for Health Ashwini Kumar Choubey and Anupriya Patel, and Vice-Chairman of NITI Aayog Rajiv Kumar, the Union health minister was updated about the progress made under NHM. It was highlighted that under the NHM's free drug initiative, funds were being provided to states and Union Territories for providing medicine in public health facilities free of charge and for setting up IT-backed systems for drug procurement and quality assurance.

Currently, all 36 states and UTs have notified the policy to provide essential drugs free of charge in public health facilities. Under the NHM's free diagnostics service initiative, substantial funding was being provided to states within their resource envelope to provide free essential diagnostic services at public health facilities. The program has been rolled out in 29 states and Union Territories which are providing free diagnostic services either in-house or through public-private partnership (PPP) mode. At the meeting, various agenda points, including enhancement of reach, outlay and facilities within components of the NHM, prevention and control of viral hepatitis, immunisation and comprehensive primary healthcare were discussed.