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Taming Two Critical Covid Uncertainties For Pharma’s Sustainable Growth

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The reasons behind a great urgency of the Governments, besides high expectations of the general public, to have the ‘ultimate solution’ very soon, against the ongoing pandemic, are understandable. However, various media-hyped narratives on their clinical trials, and timeframe for expected launch – ranging from November this year to anytime in 2021, are making many experts to raise eyebrows on the scientific processes followed for Covid vaccine development.

Exact answers to the ultimate efficacy standard, safety profile and dates of their availability to the entire population, are still not clear – not even to many domain experts. Besides, two other critical and fundamental questions in India, are related to huge financial resources and other wherewithal, such as, countrywide stringent cold-chain logistics network, required to achieve this goal.

While effective, safe and high-quality vaccines, as and when these will come, will be pivotal to contain the alarming spread of Covid-19 – and that too in a wave after wave manner. Alongside, the intense search for effective anti-Covid medicines are also expected to come to fruition. Doctors will then have in their arsenals a number of highly effective alternatives, that can predictably cure individuals, when infected by this lethal virus.

It causes a great concern when someone asks, when will those days of great relief to all come? For, those days may or may not be very soon – could well be for an indefinite period. No one seems to know the answer, yet.

Until then, pharma companies can’t afford to remain in a ‘quick-fix mode’ to address the problems related to Covid related market and consumer mindset changes. Choosing this path could eventually prove to be very costly, especially for the lost time in leveraging some key opportunities. Moving in that direction, would entail rebuilding the organization by creating a new work-culture – a mindset to be all-time ready for any disruptive changes in business. Most importantly, if or as and when it comes, the organization should not get as overwhelmed, as is happening during the current global pandemic.

In this article, I shall deliberate the following two critical and interrelated Covid-19 issues:

  • The uncertainty in achieving what everybody is expecting to get right away – getting a preventive vaccine or a cure for the infected patients.
  • Inordinate delay in getting prompt medical care by many patients for non-Covid related serious ailments, leading to complexity of the disease. How long this situation will continue still remains uncertain.

As things stand today, these uncertainties could continue for an indefinite period, making some of the Covid related changes irreversible. Thus, my aim will be, first to recap where we are today with these niggles. And then, focusing on the crucial need to pave a balanced pathway – uncharted by anyone, for destination success – in the new world order. Let me begin with the first issue first.

The uncertainty in achieving what everybody is expecting:

Although, some Covid vaccines, reportedly, will be ready by early 2021, uncertainties and delays are still anticipated on the way. Some the reasons may include the following:

  • A critical challenge: About 5.6 billion people worldwide would need to be immune in order to end the pandemic (NEJM). Thus, vaccination process may take years to achieve the coverage necessary for everyone to be protected.
  • Huge investment required: India would need to invest between Rs 3,000 -5,000 crore to create additional facilities for making a huge number of vaccines, required for the Indian population. Currently no one has the capacity to manufacture it for 1.3 billion Indian populations. Moreover, vaccine alone is not the solution to the COVID-19 problem, according to experts.
  • High vaccine cost in India: As these vaccines come from a very difficult platform its cost is going to be significantly higher than many other vaccines, so there is going to be a requirement to think about how we are going to fund this.
  • Coronavirus mutating, potentially evolving: As reported on September 24, 2020, Covid’s continual mutation may make it increasingly contagious. The study says, it’s possible that when our population-level immunity gets high, this Coronavirus will find ways to get around our immunity.
  • The logistical challenge of a lifetime: Getting billions of doses of COVID-19 vaccines around the world quickly, would require 15,000 flights and 15 million cooling boxes. Stringent temperature control requirements for the vaccine supply chain must not be compromised at any point, not even in rural India. It’s worth noting, some of these vaccines may need to be kept at temperatures as low as -80 degrees Celsius. Currently, even in the developed world, the most efficient medical supply chain conventionally distributes vaccines at +2–8°C.
  • Vaccines may not provide complete protection: If COVID-19 re-infections are common, “vaccines might not completely protect against the virus” and would instead require a design similar to seasonal flu shots to protect from new variants. Interestingly. India may, reportedly, approve covid-19 vaccines that show 50 percent efficacy in clinical trials.

Converting problems into opportunities:

Such uncertainties may not only aggravate people’s overall health risks, but also their exposure to Covid infection. Drug companies, drug authorities and various Governments have been working hard on these issues. However, as flagged earlier, amid this health crisis, there is also another growing concern of a very serious nature. It pertains to many people delaying their non-Covid related medical care and medical interventions, for various reasons.

Pharmaceutical companies can convert this problem into a golden business opportunity with ‘patient-centric’ innovative strategies having a cutting-edge, and from a number of platforms. Let me illustrate this point with an interesting example of an initiative taken by a global pharma major, in this area.

A pace setting initiative:

On September 22, 2020, Fierce Pharma reported, ‘J&J wants everyone to know that taking care of their health can’t wait—even during a pandemic.’ This effort is based on the findings of a recent Harris Poll commissioned by them. This study revealed, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused many Americans (68 percent) to delay healthcare treatment. It ranges from standard routine exams to important elective surgeries to ER visits – with physicians sharing concerns about the long-term impact of patients delaying care. The situation is expected to be no different in other countries of the world, including India.

Based on this finding Johnson & Johnson (J&J) have recently launched a US-based online initiative, aimed at giving both patients and physicians information and resources about health care options. This unique campaign has been named – “My Health Can’t Wait”.

By a statement J&J announced: “As the largest healthcare company in the world, we are committed to helping people live their healthiest lives, which means getting the care they need, when they need it.” It added: “Through My Health Can’t Wait, we hope to provide patients and healthcare providers with resources to help stay connected and prioritize their health care, both during this pandemic and in the future.” The point, especially take note of is, ‘both during this pandemic and in the future.’ This part of the above sentence of J&J, echoes the well-known management dictum – converting problem into opportunities, I add, even during the Covid pandemic.

I hope, many pharma players may also wish to pursue similar direction, responding to their own specific needs. But, not just to keep the head above water, in combating this unprecedented health crisis, but with a long-term strategic perspective – to rebuild the organization – for business excellence the new normal.

The concept reverberates:

I find the concept of ‘rebuilding the organization now, for business excellence the new normal’, reverberating in several expert voices. For example, The McKinsey ‘Briefing Note’ of September 16, 2020 – ‘COVID-19 and the great reset.’ It said: ‘The world anxiously awaits an effective COVID-19 vaccine that can be readily distributed. Until then, the priority is to re-energize organizations—to act rather than react. Even as the uncertainties of the COVID-19 crisis multiply, the goal must be to rebuild for the longer term.’

The authors emphasized, ‘a crisis has a way of bringing things to a head.’ Many believe, the coming months might be the best opportunity in memory for healthcare companies to pursue exponential innovation. This, according to McKinsey, ‘could create an additional $400 billion in value by 2025. And now is the time to claim the hundreds of billions of dollars that could be saved through productivity gains.’

Thus, I reckon, apart from creating a great business compulsion of working harder to neutralize the short-term operational constraints, Covid pandemic also provides a unique opportunity to pharma leadership. It gives a space for them for thinking long-term, and from a strategic perspective. The aim is to rebuild the organization, placing it at a higher trajectory for success, in an uncharted frontier, thus far.

Conclusion:

Meanwhile, as on September 27, 2020 morning, India had recorded a staggering figure of 5,992,532 of Coronavirus cases with 94,534 deaths. The virus’s unprecedented onslaught on the country still continues, unabated. Be that as it may, coming back to where I started from, I reckon, pharma companies, in general, could play a stellar role in converting the dual problems of uncertainties into a number of opportunities. In that process, they can create a win-win situation for all, in the health care space.

The uncertainties related to scientifically proven, safe and effective Covid drugs and vaccines will, hopefully, be addressed – sometime, by the scientists and medical researchers. However, as the above McKinsey paper wrote: ‘Until then, the priority is to re-energize organizations – to act rather than react. Even as the uncertainties of the COVID-19 crisis multiply, the goal must be to rebuild for the longer term.’ Thus, the second issue, needs to be creatively leveraged mostly by individual drug players, starting from now.

From this perspective, pharma leadership, will need to commit quality time of thinking people, supported by adequate resources, for conceiving and effectively implementing a ‘patient-centric’ strategy, that patients will fall for in the new normal. That being done, the top honchos, will require to roll up their sleeves to prioritize primary, secondary and tertiary action areas.

Instead of trying to do a little bit of everything, in all possible areas of Covid related changes in the market dynamics, ‘primary action areas’ ought to be the starting point, deploying all resources. And then, expand to the ‘secondary’ and ‘tertiary’ ones, in a well-calibrated manner. Evaluation of results and tightening the strategic loose knots, if any, should be an ongoing process. If implementation of the process requires handholding, so be it. Because, taming these two critical Covid related uncertainties, is intimately related to a sustainable growth for the pharma companies.

By: Tapan J. Ray   

Disclaimer: The views/opinions expressed in this article are entirely my own, written in my individual and personal capacity. I do not represent any other person or organization for this opinion.

 

Pharma To Leverage The Art of Turning Challenges Into Opportunities, Now

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Since, the dawn of the year 2020, the human population living in different countries, across the world are facing ‘lockdowns in different forms. Although essential, it severely restricts normal daily essential and other important activities of all. A large number of populations in India, is also experiencing the same – for nearly 4 months, almost at a trot, as on date.

The fear of getting infected by COVID-19, fueled by uncertainty about a comprehensive way to surely avert infection and apprehension about what happens if someone gets infected, have been haunting many for several months. Moreover, the possible impact of several related essential measures, such as, social distancing and wearing a mask mostly while being outdoors, on both life and livelihood, is profound. It has already started causing an unprecedented – both physical and mental stress on many individuals, besides the economy of the nation.

Living amid ‘lockdown’ conditions is not just an unpleasant experience for all, it’s almost a ‘prison like’, experience for a vast number of people – particularly, both young and old with comorbidly. “It’s very similar to being trapped in a bunker with no access outside,” as expressed by a person with similar issues, which, may be construed as a universal feeling of common individuals. Interestingly, this was quoted in an article -  ‘What patients need right now’, published in the Reuters Events Pharmaon July 07, 2020. The article also highlighted that many other fellow sufferers, especially non-Covid-19 patients, are enduring pandemic enforced isolation without much hope. “They are staying in limbo until help is available and adapting to the worsening of their health conditions,” the article added.

Further, as captured in the McKinsey article – ‘COVID-19 and commercial pharma: Navigating an uneven recovery,’ published on April 21, 2020 – not just patients, health care professionals including doctors, are also facing unprecedented challenges. Especially, because of the need to address fundamental changes in the treatment of patients with conditions other than COVID-19. This is happening across medical specialties and therapeutic areas, besides of course in advising and treating patients with suspected and confirmed cases of COVID-19.

In some instances, some doctors do also worry about their financial security, as practices and health systems face unprecedented financial issues, the above article emphasized. However, at the same time, many of them are now rapidly adjusting how they deliver care, such as through increased use of telemedicine in different forms and ways, the survey found. Which is why, the support they need from pharma companies is also changing.

Taking cognizance of these critical developments, pharma players would require rewriting their playbook for business operations and for its urgent implementation. This article will focus on this important area of pharma business, by leveraging the art of turning a problem or a challenge into an opportunity.

Leveraging the art of turning a challenge into an opportunity:

Turning a problem or challenge into an opportunity in managing business operations, isn’t a cup of tea of all managers, across domains. More so, when it’s caused by an unprecedented disruptive change, such as the Covid-19 pandemic.

The first and the foremost prerequisite from a manager is a mindset to make it happen – driven by uncluttered thinking, with a clear focus on what needs to be achieved, how and when – step by step. Each element of a change has to be analyzed in-depth – supported by credible data, with possible barriers envisaged on the way. In tandem, weighing the chances of success in these initiatives based on data – and not gut feeling, within a predetermined timeframe will be critical. The net outcome of this process will help pharma players acquire a differentiated competitive edge for excellence, amid today’s all-pervasive quandary.

Under this backdrop, leveraging the art of turning a problem or challenge into an opportunity – in an organized manner, for a successful outcome of the present and future pharma business, appears to be a crying need.

The points to ponder:

Effectively moving in this direction will call for – at its very onset, a careful and unbiased data-based assessment of several critical areas, which will include:

  • Whether customer engagement platforms, medium, processes and also the core content of communication of pre Covid-19 days remain equally relevant today, and will remain so in the foreseeable future, for productive business outcomes.
  • Mapping changes with the extent for each, in all touchpoints of disease treatment processes is important – involving both patients and doctors, and simultaneously capturing their new preferences in those areas.
  • Arriving at what strategic and tactical changes the new normal calls for, to effectively engage with especially, non-Covid patient treating doctors and non-Covid infected patients, for other disease areas.
  • How doctors are delivering care, particularly to these patients today?

Accordingly, the pathway for required changes has to be charted out in detail, specifying the end point of each, on a time-bound and ongoing basis. The good news is, several pharma players have already taken several praiseworthy initiatives to combat this crisis.

What pharma companies have done so far:

So far, many pharma companies – both global and local, have taken some commendable steps to address the immediate fallouts of the crisis. These include,

  • Repurposing old medicines – starting from hydroxychloroquine, remdesivir to dexamethasoneand probably beyond. All these drugs are currently being used for the treatment of Covide-19, although conclusive scientific evidences are still awaited – for most of such repurposed drugs.
  • Covid-19 vaccine development started almost immediately, including the homegrown ones.

As the above McKinsey article – ‘COVID-19 and commercial pharma: Navigating an uneven recovery,’ also reconfirms, now most pharma companies are largely focusing on ‘the immediate crisis, including by facilitating access to medicine; supporting HCP, institution, and patient needs in new ways; safeguarding employees; and enabling employees to operate in a new environment.’

The areas where pharma needs to focus more amid immediate crisis:

Another, responsibility of pharma to help tide over the immediate crisis, is to ensure that critical drugs, such as remdesivir, do not go in short supply. And also, avoiding unnecessary hype on a COVID-19 vaccine, which a global CEO termed as a grave disservice‘ to the public.

Nearer home, it also happened – not by any pharma company, but by the country’s premier, state-run medical research organization – the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). The head of the ICMR has announced that India is planning to launch the Covid-19 vaccine by August 15, 2020. This was later retracted under heavy adverse criticism.

Future focus areas need to be in sync with the changing customer behavior:  

While converting several challenges into opportunities in sync with the future requirements of their business operations, drug companies should try to derive the first mover advantages. For this purpose, creative use of almost real-time data will be vital. In this endeavor, I reiterate, one of the top priorities will be to ensure that all touchpoints of the consumer engagement process take into account the changing customer behavior, as captured by data.

To have a productive value delivery system in the new normal, cerebral use of modern technology-based tools and platforms could provide a sharp cutting edge. A similar process may be adopted – even a stage earlier – during the differential value creation process of the business. Nevertheless, the name of the game for the future, would still remain delighting the customers at all the touch points, especially while navigating through strong headwinds.

Another major impact area of pharma business:

The onslaught of Covid-19 pandemic has also resulted in some significant behavioral changes among many health care consumers. These spans across several areas, as I wrote earlier. For example, a number of surveys have revealed that fewer number of non-Covid-19 patients are now visiting doctors’ clinics.

The study quoted by the above McKinsey article highlights some important points in this regard, such as:

  • Among surveyed HCPs, 82 percent report declines in patient volumes, with more than half describing the declines as “significant”.
  • 40 percent of the surveyed patients reported having a doctor cancel an appointment, while an additional 30 percent or so canceled the appointments themselves.
  • Half of surveyed physicians worry that their patients will not be able to receive timely care for new or existing conditions, particularly those that are not COVID-19 related.
  • The overall reduction in volume is widespread, but variation exists. For example, the number of oncology-related visits have declined far less than those related to cardiology or dermatology, perhaps reflecting patient or physician perceptions of urgency.
  • Such data represent a snapshot of a time still early in the trajectory of this crisis, but the HCPs surveyed expect the trends to continue—and to accelerate, potentially.

Another challenge is surfacing, the talent gap to squarely deal with the crisis.

The problem of talent gap, an opportunity? 

While preparing a company to succeed amid new challenges of the new normal, pharma leadership will notice some critical talent gaps in important areas of business. This is indeed a problem or a challenge. But can this also be converted into a new opportunity? … I guess, this is an opportunity of reskilling the company to meet with the future challenges, to move ahead at a faster pace.

In pursuit of this goal, top pharma decision makers may wish to evaluate a well-balanced mix of two approaches:

  • Reskilling competent existing employees for the new world.
  • Hiring new and ready – suitable talents, for immediate results.

Conclusion:

Reuters reported last Friday, with over 1 million Covid-19 cases, ‘India joins U.S., Brazil in the grim Coronavirus club.’ As on July 19, 2020 morning, the recorded Coronavirus cases in the country reached 10,77,874 with 26,828 deaths. According to the Indian Medical Association (IMA), the spike in the number of Covid-19 cases in India has resulted in the community spread of the Coronavirus disease. It further added: “This is now an exponential growth. Every day the number of cases is increasing by more than around 30,000. This is really a bad situation for the country.” The pace of climb continues going north.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister of India has also urged all concerned to convert Covid-19 related challenges into opportunities. He said, it’s time to initiate reforms in several areas of governance by all the Indian State Governments.

Call it, the Prime Minister’s advice, or a basic management tool – most appropriate to leverage at this hour, the concept is worth considering by pharma players, as well, instead of getting overwhelmed by the crisis. Thus, in my view, it’s about time for pharma companies to identify critical Covid-19 related challenges, both immediate and also of the future – and convert those into opportunities – powered by technology-based cerebral inputs, in the new world order.
By: Tapan J. Ray
Disclaimer: The views/opinions expressed in this article are entirely my own, written in my individual and personal capacity. I do not represent any other person or organization for this

 

Deadly Climate Change Impact On Human Health: How Prepared Is India?

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It’s not uncommon to find many people, including heads of countries, expressing their serious apprehensions in public, about the scary impact of climate change. Just the last year, on November 26, 2018, BBC News captured one of such incidences with the astonishing headline: “Trump on climate change report: I don’t believe it.” The findings of this report have underscored, ‘unchecked global warming would wreak havoc on the US economy.’

Similarly, a few years ago, on September 05, 2014,CNN News 18 quoted Prime Minister Narendra Modi as saying: “Climate has not changed. We have changed. Our habits have changed,’ while answering to a question on climate change. Regardless of the outcome of any split-hair analysis of the rationale behind such statements from the world leaders, such public discourse could trivialize the possible catastrophic impact of climate change on the planet earth.

Be that as it may, that climate change is taking place, carrying all its ill-effects, is real now, without any ambiguity. There is also widespread consensus among the members of the United Nations that ‘the Earth is warming at a rate unprecedented during post hunter-gatherer human existence.’

It is worth noting that way back in 2001, the ‘Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’, further recorded: “There is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming observed over the last 50 years is likely to be attributable to human activities”, most importantly the release of greenhouse gases from fossil fuels.

Several ‘International Agreements’, including the Paris Agreement on Climate Change - all supported by hard scientific data, have called for immediate, quantifiable measures in each country to address the ‘wide-ranging environmental threats, such as ozone depletion and long-range transboundary air pollution.’ Against this backdrop, in this article, I shall focus on the dreadful effect of climate change in the proliferation of a wide-variety of ailments, especially infectious diseases, within a few decades. While doing so, let me first have a quick recap on what is ‘Climate Change’, in a simple language.

Climate Change – a quick recap:

According to the United Nations, ‘Climate Change is the defining issue of our time and we are at a defining moment. From shifting weather patterns that threaten food production, to rising sea levels that increase the risk of catastrophic flooding, the impacts of climate change are global in scope and unprecedented in scale. Without drastic action today, adapting to these impacts in the future will be more difficult and costly.’

It’s important to note, although, the planet Earth’s climate is constantly changing over geological time, the current period of warming is occurring more rapidly than many past events. Scientists are concerned that the natural fluctuation or variance, is being overtaken by a rapid human-induced warming, as they emit more greenhouse gases. As these gases get trapped in the atmosphere, more heat is retained that has serious implications for the stability of the planet’s climate, even impacting human health with grave consequences. The World Health Organization (W.H.O) has also warned that the health of millions could be threatened by increases in malaria, waterborne disease and malnutrition.

Its impact human health:

The direct and indirect impact of climate change on human health is profound. Before I go into the specifics, let me indicate some of the direct ones, as captured by the Center for Health and the Global Environment (CHanGE), University of Washington. This is sans any charts and maps, unlike the usual practice:

  • Increasing temperatures are causing poor air quality that can affect the heart and worsen cardiovascular disease.
  • Increasing exposure to pollen, molds, and air pollution, all of which can worsen allergies and other lung diseases, such as asthma.
  • Changes in the geographic range of disease-carrying insects, such as mosquitoes, ticks, fleas and other similar ones, which can fast spread many tropical ailments, such as dengue fever and malaria to humans.
  • Increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather and climate events can cause, besides many physical illnesses, several kinds of mental illnesses – increasing both morbidity and mortality.
  • Frequent flooding events and sea level rise can contaminate water with harmful pathogens and chemicals, potentially causing food-borne and waterborne illnesses.
  • Changing weather patterns affect the quality and quantity of nutritious foods with increasing incidence of under-nutrition and micronutrient deficiencies.
  • Additional stress placed on hospital and public health systems, could limit people’s ability to obtain adequate health care during extreme weather events and disease outbreaks.

Most specific and the deadly one:

The World Health Organization (W.H.O) publication - ‘Climate change and human health – Risks and Responses,’ clearly flagged that ‘Changes in infectious disease transmission patterns are a likely major consequence of climate change.’

Citing a pertinent analogy to explain the reason, it said: “Humans have known that climatic conditions affect epidemic diseases from long before the role of infectious agents was discovered, late in the nineteenth century. Roman aristocrats retreated to hill resorts each summer to avoid malaria. South Asians learnt early that, in high summer, strongly curried foods were less likely to cause diarrhea.”

Would pharma players convert these problems into opportunities?

Curiously, some pharmaceutical investors are researching to fathom potential business opportunities lying underneath the above problem, especially for vaccines and newer antimicrobials. It’s probably a blessing in disguise not just for the drug companies, but also for the general public, considering the following two issues, prevailing in the current scenario:

  • According to W.H.O, Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is an increasingly serious threat to global public health. It threatens the effective prevention and treatment of an ever-increasing range of infections caused by bacteria, parasites, viruses and fungi, causing the success of even major surgery and cancer chemotherapy seriously compromised.
  • ‘Pharmaceutical companies are backing away from a growing threat that could kill 10 million people a year by 2050’, reported a July 19, 2018 article. This is because, ‘Antibiotics Aren’t Profitable Enough for Big Pharma to Make More,’ wrote another article, published in Bloomberg Businessweek, on May 3, 2019.

Interestingly, a recent report analyzed and evaluated how this can be done, and which companies will be benefitted most in that process. 

“Climate change to fetch a big business opportunity for pharma”:

As reported on July 25, 2019, Morgan Stanley told investors that climate change will cause an increased prevalence and rapid spread of infectious diseases that may be a boon for some drug companies with big vaccine portfolios. It also highlighted, between 383 million and 725 million more people may be exposed to Zika, dengue and other diseases by 2050, depending on the pace and severity of global warming.

The analysts estimated, especially 7 pharma companies will be critical to fighting infectious diseases brought on by climate change. According to the research note of thebank, ‘the USD 500 billion infectious disease market could see demand for an added USD 125 billion in new vaccines, or as much as USD 200 billion assuming premium pricing for more complex new treatments.’

The top possible gainers:

Identifying the top possible gainers, Morgan Stanley apprised, vaccine development being more difficult and expensive, companies that are already in that business will have an upper hand.

Hence, Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline are expected at the top, given their existing pipelines and manufacturing capacity. Takeda and Merck both have vaccines in the works for dengue fever, one of the diseases that climate change is likely to exacerbate. Janssen and Pfizer are both active in the vaccines market, but would need to establish new research programs to take on tropical diseases. ‘Moderna’ is also in a good position because it has demonstrated a potential pipeline for drugs combating the Zika virus., as Morgan Stanley further elaborated.

Nevertheless, Morgan Stanley isn’t the only bank looking at investment opportunities from climate change, on July 24, 2019, Goldman Sachs also, reportedly, said it was hiring a sustainable-finance group that is looking into issues related to sustainability. Thus, on the positive side, climate change could fetch a big business opportunity for many pharma players, across the world.

600 million people at risk for climate change in India:

On June 24, 2019, a reputed national business news daily of India reported, “600 million people at risk: Climate change may soon turn critical in India.” Against this threat, the current public health care infrastructure in the country, continues to remain fragile, as stated in India’s National Health Profile, 13th Issue.

It also states, the cost of treatment has been on the rise in India and it has led to inequity in access to health care services. Intriguingly, the country spends around 1.02 percent of its GDP towards public health, which has remained static to declining over a long period of time. Although, health insurance is a growing segment, it hasn’t taken off fully. Several measures are needed to improve and expand insurance coverage.

Further, according to the report by the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy (CDDEP) in the US, India is facing shortage of 600,000 doctors and 2 million nurses. This report was widely quoted by the Indian media, on April 14, 2019.

These facts give a perspective on what is India’s level of preparedness to address the critical health issues related to climate change, especially the havoc that the dreaded infectious diseases can cause to so many.

Conclusion:

Astute health policy makers, including a large section of the top political echelon of the country are, apparently, aware of various ill effects of climate change. They also seem to be cognizant that these are likely to accelerate the worsening health problems of the population, including infectious diseases, asthma and other respiratory diseases.

Assuming, new and modern drugs will keep coming to help treat these ailments, do we have a functioning and efficient public health infrastructure to grapple with such issues. What about high out of pocket expenditure towards healthcare for a large section of the population, regardless of Ayushman Bharat?

As the (W.H.O) publication - ‘Climate change and human health – Risks and Responses’ recommended, ‘early planning for health is essential to reduce, hopefully avoid, near future and long-term health impacts of global climate change. The optimal solution, however, is in the hands of governments, society and every individual—a commitment to a change in values, to enable a full transition to sustainable development.’

That said, as India is also a signatory to the latest Paris Agreement on Climate Change, can we assume, India will walk the talk to significantly contain its deadly impact on human health? How is India preparing itself to meet this great challenge of Probably it is anybody’s guess, at least, as on date?

By: Tapan J. Ray   

Disclaimer: The views/opinions expressed in this article are entirely my own, written in my individual and personal capacity. I do not represent any other person or organization for this opinion.