The Consultative Committee attached to the Union ministry of health has raised concern about the financial burden of managing diseases due to out-of-pocket expenditure and the lack of adequate public health infrastructure.

The meeting of Committee, held here on Thursday, also expressed concern about non utilization of funds by the State Governments leading to unsatisfactory implementation of Central Schemes. The meeting was chaired by Union Minister for Health Ghulam Nabi Azad to discuss the issue of non-communicable diseases, according to an official release.

Ghulam Nabi Azad informed the Members that recent data has highlighted that non-communicable diseases are taking a heavy burden the world over and particularly so in India. It is estimated that globally deaths due to NCD amount to 60.3 per cent and deaths due to NCDs in India amount for 50.5 per cent. Four major NCDs namely, Diabetes, Respiratory Diseases, Cancers, Cardiovascular Diseases cause 80 per cent of deaths in WHO regions as brought out by data of WHO Global Health Observatory 2011. It has also been noted that more than 20 per cent of the population have at least one chronic NCD and more than 10 per cent have more than one chronic disease.

The Minister also informed that concern about NCD is becoming alarming enough that a two-day special session of UN General Assembly has been assigned to discuss NCDs on the 19th and 20th September, 2011 at New York. He added that the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has been conscious of the NCD burden and had initiated programmes like National Cancer Control Programme, National Blindness Control Programme, National Mental Health Programme, National Iodine Deficiency Disorders Control Programme, National Tobacco Control Programme, Trauma Care Facility on National Highways and National Deafness Control Programme before the 11th Plan. Additionally, National Programme for Prevention and Control of Fluorosis, Pilot Project on Oral Health, National Programme for Prevention and Control of cancer, Diabetes, CVD, Stroke, National Programme for Health Care of the Elderly, Pilot Programme for Prevention of Burn Injuries, Disaster Management/Mobile Hospitals and Organ and Tissue Transplant were initiated during the 11th Plan.

Based on the experiences and issues that emerged during implementation of these plans, Azad noted that these programmes needed to be expanded to the entire country to cover urban, rural and slum population. He also emphasized that convergence and integration would be critical in implementation of large number of interventions with unified management structure at various levels.

He informed that while the National Programme for Prevention & Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases & Stroke has been started on pilot basis in 100 districts since October, 2010, the programme will be extended to the entire country during the 12th Plan. He hoped that early detection and timely treatment will lead to increase in cure rate and survival; reduction in exposure to risk factors, life style changes leading to reduction in NCDs; improved mental health and better quality of life; reduction in prevalence of physical disabilities including blindness and deafness; provide user friendly health services to the elderly population of the country; reduction in deaths and disability due to trauma, burns and disasters as also reduction in out-of-pocket expenditure on management of NCDs and thereby preventing catastrophic implication on affected individual and families.

Ministers of State for Health & Family Welfare S Gandhiselven and Sudip Bandyopadhyay were present in the meeting. Senior officials of all the four departments of Ministry of Health & Family Welfare also attended the meeting.