Analyzing the Impact of Government Expenditures on Health Sector in Pakistan: Challenges, Opportunities and Policy Reforms

Abstract

Pakistan’s healthcare system experiences issues due to lack of funding, poor facilities and shortage of staff. The government allocates only 1.2% of GDP towards the healthcare sector, but the WHO urges it to spend 5% instead. Due to limited money, the government is unable to handle issues involving healthcare infrastructure, hiring talented people or investing in necessary equipment. Rural areas often struggle to receive adequate healthcare as they do not have enough infrastructure and must travel a greater distance compared to people living in cities. There is a shortage of healthcare workers in the country and most of its skilled healthcare workers have the training of secondary education. Many people do not get the necessary health care they need because they have to pay more than half of the bill out of pocket. There are differences in people’s health because health resources are not shared equally between the cities and rural areas in different provinces. People in Pakistan may benefit from development through the Sehat Sahulat scheme (SSP) and digital health, including telemedicine, online healthcare and smartphone health apps. International organizations such as the World Bank, have granted Pakistan loans to boost its development and healthcare. To achieve sustainable healthcare, policymakers should invest more in medical care, improve primary care, distribute resources properly, motivate healthcare staff to stay and improve technology used in health care.

Keywords: Public Health Expenditure, Health Policy Reforms, Healthcare Financing, Pakistan Health Sector, Fiscal Policy and Health, Health System Challenges GDP, World Bank, IMF