Thiruvananthapuram | Kerala Health Minister K Muraleedharan on Sunday clarified that the state government has no plans to privatise the public health sector and dismissed reports suggesting otherwise as “fake news”.
Addressing a press conference here, Muraleedharan said he had come across several reports claiming that the government was planning to privatise government hospitals.
Referring to a recent statement by the Government Nurses Association that any move to privatise the public health sector would be resisted, the minister questioned the basis of such concerns.
“Who said the public health sector is going to be privatised? Can I continue in this post if all public hospitals are privatised? Can a democratic government think like that?” he asked.
Muraleedharan said his recent remarks on using Corporate Social Responsibility funds from major companies for constructing government hospital buildings had been misinterpreted.
“For accepting CSR funds, we do not have to extend any favours to those companies. CSR funds are meant for such public welfare activities,” he said.
The minister said that, given the state’s financial situation as highlighted in the recently released White Paper, constructing new hospital buildings entirely through government funds would be challenging.
“The doctor–population ratio has to be improved, which involves additional expenditure. There are pending liabilities and substantial financial commitments. Along with these, hospital development is not easy. Therefore, CSR contributions from companies will be utilised,” he said.
Muraleedharan asserted that the government would not adopt any policy aimed at promoting private medical colleges at the expense of the public health system.
“We want ordinary people to come to government hospitals. Those who can afford it may choose private hospitals, but our priority is to strengthen the public healthcare system,” he said.
The minister also alleged that a section has long existed which seeks to undermine public hospitals, regardless of which party is in power.
“Such lobbies have existed for years and continue to exist even now. We will counter such efforts. Protecting the public sector is one of our foremost priorities,” Muraleedharan said.
