Ensuring care for the golden years - Way forward for India has been saved
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Ensuring care for the golden years - Way forward for India
FICCI 7th Annual Health Insurance Conference
The burgeoning elderly population is driving the need for elderly care globally. In India, the situation is paradoxical – on the one hand we are reaping the benefits of a large working age population and on the other we are staring at a significant portion of it being above 60 years by the year 2050, translating into ~300 million elderly people. This calls for a serious focus on elderly care, and we need to start now.
A growing elderly population has significant ramifications both at a micro and macro level, especially for less developed settings. Developing regions, such as India, already face constraints on capacity and capability of their healthcare system to effectively cater to the current needs of its population. The projected increase in the number of people requiring elderly care will therefore put greater strain on an already stretched health system. In this context it is imperative to understand and strengthen the mechanisms for both provision and financing of care for the elderly, to ensure that their unique needs are effectively recognised and addressed through appropriate delivery and financing mechanisms.
