Budget 2025: Gig workers will now be provided healthcare under PM Jan Arogya Yojana
Budget 2025: Gig workers will now be provided healthcare under PM Jan Arogya Yojana
Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday, during the presentation of the Union Budget, said that gig workers will now be provided healthcare under the PM Jan Arogya Yojana.
Reacting to the budget announcement of including gig workforces under the government assurance scheme, Yogesh Agarwal, CEO and Founder at Onsurity, said that the move is a crucial step toward ensuring financial and health security for millions of independent workers in India.
The Minister also added that in order to provide relief to patients, particularly those suffering from cancer, rare illnesses, and chronic diseases, 36 life-saving drugs and medicines are proposed to be added to the list of medicines fully exempted from basic customs duty.
Six life-saving medicines are also proposed to be added to list attracting concessional customs duty of 5%.
Government will also facilitate setting up of day care cancer centres in all district hospitals in the next three years.
Also read: Union Budget 2025 LIVE updates
“Two hundred centers will be established in 2025-26 itself,” the Minister in her speech.
Speaking about expansion of medical education the Minister noted that the Central Government has added almost 1.1 lakh undergraduate and post-graduate medical education seats in 10 years, an increase of 130%.
Now in the next year, 10,000 additional seats will be added in medical colleges and hospitals towards the goal of adding 75,000 medical education seats in the next five years.
Medical tourism and heal in India will be promoted along with private sector, including easier visa norms the Minister said in her speech.
Reacting to the budget announcements Mandeep Singh Malhotra, director of Surgical Oncology at C.K. Birla Hospital, Delhi the Finance Minister’s proposal to establish day care centres across India, either by upgrading civil hospitals or peripheral health centres to provide chemotherapy, is a significant step.
He said that cancer statistics indicate that for a majority of these cases, first-line chemotherapy can be effectively administered at well-equipped day care centres with proper training and support.
“This approach will help manage a substantial portion of the country’s cancer load,” he said.
Behram Khodaiji, CEO, Ruby Hall Clinic welcoming the budget said that this is a step to strengthen India’s healthcare system, particularly in cancer care and affordability of life-saving treatments.
“The exemption of basic customs duty on 36 life-saving drugs and concessional rates on six more is a crucial step in reducing treatment costs for patients battling cancer, rare diseases, and chronic illnesses,” he said.
He added that additionally, waiving customs duty on medicines provided through patient assistance programs is a progressive move, expanding access to essential drugs for those in financial distress.
With 37 new medicines and 13 more patient assistance programs added, this initiative will significantly benefit underprivileged patients. “However, it is vital to ensure transparency and efficiency in the implementation of these programs so that the support reaches those who need it most,” he said.
He added that waiving customs duty on medicines provided through patient assistance programs is a progressive move, which will expand access to essential drugs for those in financial distress.
With 37 new medicines and 13 more patient assistance programs added, this initiative will significantly benefit underprivileged patients. “However, it is vital to ensure transparency and efficiency in the implementation of these programs so that the support reaches those who need it most,” he said.
