Overhaul of Traditional Healthcare: Parliamentary Panel Demands Price Caps, Insurance Coverage, and Nationwide Expansion for Ayush

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NEW DELHI — In a landmark push to make integrative healthcare affordable and accessible, India’s Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare presented its 175th, 176th, and 177th reports on August 7, 2026. The parliamentary panel recommended sweeping systemic reforms across the Ministry of Ayush (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homoeopathy). To curb soaring out-of-pocket medical costs for patients, the committee urged the Indian government to establish statutory price caps on essential traditional medicines, mandate full coverage under the public health scheme Ayushman Bharat, and expand specialized day-care treatment facilities across the nation.

Capping Drug Costs and Leveraging Jan Aushadhi Stores

A primary driver of high healthcare costs in India is out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE)—the direct financial burden patients bear when paying for care without insurance coverage. According to the parliamentary panel, the absence of a statutory price control mechanism for commercial Ayush formulations leaves consumers vulnerable to unchecked pricing. Unstable prices for raw herbal materials and seasonal shortages further inflate drug costs, which private pharmaceutical companies pass directly to consumers.

To protect patients, the committee recommended that the Ministry of Ayush partner with pharmaceutical pricing authorities to implement a legal price-control framework. This mechanism would set maximum retail price (MRP) caps on essential, widely prescribed traditional medicines.

Additionally, the committee urged the government to fulfill a long-delayed executive directive: selling quality-tested, co-branded Ayush formulations through the nationwide network of Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Kendras (government-backed generic medicine stores).

“Leaving private-sector Ayush pharmaceuticals unregulated exposes patients to arbitrary pricing,” the committee stated in its report, emphasizing that utilizing existing public retail outlets will rapidly increase the supply of standardized, low-cost treatments.

Expanding Insurance and Eliminating Claim Obstacles

While the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) previously issued advisories directing insurers to provide 100% reimbursement for cashless traditional medical care, many policyholders still face arbitrary claim rejections or unexpected out-of-pocket balances.

The committee highlighted that outdated treatment tariff schedules—some unchanged since 2016—force insurance companies to settle claims inconsistently. To resolve this, the panel recommended:

Standardized Insurance Rates: Rapid finalization of updated, actuarially sound benchmark rates across all recognized Ayush therapies to ensure transparent claim settlements.
Ayushman Bharat Integration: Immediate formalization of comprehensive Ayush treatment packages under the Ayushman Bharat–Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), India’s flagship public health protection scheme for low-income families.
Strict Monitoring: Active enforcement to ensure private insurers comply with IRDAI rules without administrative delays.

Universal Access: Bringing Ayush to Local Communities

Currently, specialized Day Care Centres for Ayush therapies under the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) operate largely as a pilot program restricted to the Delhi-NCR region. The committee criticized this geographic inequality, calling for the immediate expansion of accredited private Ayurveda, Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homoeopathy day-care centers and inpatient hospitals to all CGHS-covered cities nationwide.

To make care available at the grassroots level, the committee recommended mandating co-located Ayush facilities across a baseline percentage of all newly sanctioned and existing Primary Health Centres (PHCs), Community Health Centres (CHCs), and District Hospitals (DHs).

“Out-of-pocket expenditure can be most effectively minimized when patients have simultaneous, unhindered access to both conventional and holistic Ayush treatments under a single roof,” the panel noted.

       Proposed Universal Integration Model
 ┌───────────────────────────────────────────────┐
 │       Primary & Community Health Centres      │
 │  (Co-located Allopathic + Ayush Care Units)   │
 └───────────────────────┬───────────────────────┘
                         │
        ┌────────────────┴────────────────┐
        ▼                                 ▼
┌───────────────┐                 ┌───────────────┐
│ Jan Aushadhi  │                 │ Tele-Medicine │
│  Medicines    │                 │ (eSanjeevani) │
│ (Capped MRP)  │                 │ Virtual Care  │
└───────────────┘                 └───────────────┘

Furthermore, the report called for a nationwide digital health push, recommending the integration of the eSanjeevani telemedicine platform across all local dispensaries to eliminate travel costs and lost wages for rural patients.

Standardization, Scientific Rigor, and Ethical Funding

To address skepticism among allopathic medical practitioners and insurance underwriters, the committee emphasized the urgent need for standardized clinical evidence and quality control:

Standard Treatment Guidelines (STGs): Accelerating publication of evidence-based clinical guidelines across all Ayush streams to eliminate ineffective treatment variations.
Pharmacoeconomic Research: Mandating formal cost-effectiveness studies to measure Quality-Adjusted Life Years (QALYs)—a standard metric evaluating how well a treatment improves both the length and quality of a patient’s life.
Cross-Discipline Research: Expanding joint research centers between Ayush institutions and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) at major tertiary medical facilities.
Public Healthcare Equity Fund: Establishing a framework where accredited private and public hospitals offering medical tourism to foreign patients contribute a percentage of international revenues into a dedicated fund. This fund will subsidize complex treatments and medicines for economically disadvantaged domestic patients.

Expert Commentary and Public Health Perspective

Public health experts and medical practitioners have largely welcomed the parliamentary panel’s recommendations, while highlighting practical challenges in execution.

“Capping the prices of essential traditional medicines is a crucial step for patient welfare,” said Dr. Anita Deshmukh, a public health researcher and health economist not involved in the parliamentary panel. “However, regulating herbal formulations is technically complex. Unlike synthetic drugs, botanical raw materials vary depending on soil, climate, and harvesting seasons. Setting a fixed price cap requires maintaining strict Quality Management System (QMS) standards so that manufacturers do not compromise on ingredient concentration or purity.”

Skepticism among conventional physicians often stems from historical gaps in standardized treatment protocols. “When a patient receives integrative care, every provider must speak the same clinical language,” noted Dr. Rajesh Kumar, a senior consultant in internal medicine. “Notifying Standard Treatment Guidelines and establishing pharmacoeconomic data will build clinical trust, protect patients from unproven therapies, and streamline insurance approvals.”

What This Means for Patients

If fully implemented by the Ministry of Ayush and state governments, these parliamentary recommendations will transform daily healthcare choices:

Lower Medication Costs: Standardized prices for essential remedies at retail pharmacies and local Jan Aushadhi outlets.
Clearer Insurance Claims: Fewer unexpected out-of-pocket bills for insured patients undergoing inpatient or day-care therapies.
Broader Rural Care: Greater access to qualified practitioners, mobile medical units, and tele-consultations directly within local communities.
Quality Assurance: Clearer safety protocols enforced by mandatory accreditation standards through the Quality Council of India (QCI) and National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH).

Medical Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. Always consult with qualified healthcare professionals before making any health-related decisions or changes to your treatment plan. The information presented here is based on current research and expert opinions, which may evolve as new evidence emerges.

References

Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare (2026). 175th, 176th, and 177th Reports on Demands for Grants and Actions Taken by Ministry of Ayush. Rajya Sabha Secretariat, Parliament of India. Tabled August 7, 2026.
Press Information Bureau (PIB), Government of India. Press Release on the 175th, 176th and 177th Report of Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health & Family Welfare. Ministry of Ayush, Released August 7, 2026 (ID: 2026/AYUSH/175-177).

About Post Author

Dr Akshay Minhas

MD (Community Medicine) PGDGARD (GIS) Assistant Professor Dr. Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College (DR.RPGMC), Tanda Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, India

[email protected]

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