Advisor to Chief Minister Punjab on Health, Kh Salman Rafique has said that 37 percent increase in the allocation for health sector in provincial budget 2014-15 reflects healthy Punjab. He said Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has proved himself as poor-friendly chief minister by allocating Rs 8.75 billion for provision of free medicines to the poor patients in government hospitals in the provincial budget.
Commenting on the next fiscal year budget, Rafique further said that total proportion of Punjab Development Fund is Rs 345 billion out of which Rs 119 billion would be spent on the development projects of Southern Punjab which is 36 percent of total development budget.
Rafique further said that government would spend Rs 121.80 billion on health sector in the next year's budget. He further said that Chief Minister while keeping in view the difficulties and miseries of kidney patients has enhanced the funds for free dialysis facility to the kidney patients from Rs 300 million to Rs 600 million which is a new record.
He further said that Rs 36.44 crore would be spent for purchase of ambulances for district and tehsil headquarter hospitals for immediate transportation of serious patients. He disclosed that government has planned to upgrade all DHQ and THQ hospitals within four years in phases. He said that on the direction of Chief Minister Punjab, more mobile health units would be provided to backward districts for which Rs one billion have been allocated in the next year's budget.
Moreover, Rs 1.8 billion have been allocated for mother and child health, Rs 8.15 billion for teaching hospitals whereas Rs 2 billion have been allocated for achieving targets of MDGs. Next fiscal year's budget will open new avenues of development and prosperity in Punjab, he added.