The seemingly impressive growth of the Indian economy hides many social ills, one of which is the failure to provide health care for all. The 2012 release of the Planning Commission’s draft strategy for universal health coverage (UHC) was seen as an attempt to address the situation and it attracted considerable attention, and criticism. At the heart of the debate is the proposal that UHC could be best achieved through greater participation of the already dominant private sector, and by scaling up health insurance schemes.
