TN Announces Drastic Shift From Population Control to Family Well-Being
He said the programmes implemented over the years have brought success taking the state to a new demographic frontier.
Chennai: Health and family welfare minister K.G. Arunraj on Monday announced a major shift in the state’s family planning strategy from population control to family well-being.
The minister, who tabled the policy note for discussion on demand for grants for the health and family welfare department, said, “The vision of the government is that every family in Tamil Nadu attains the family size it desires wherein every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe and every child born is enabled to thrive.”
He said the programmes implemented over the years have brought success taking the state to a new demographic frontier. As the paradigm shifted, three decades of below-replacement fertility has resulted in a cohort of women entering the reproductive ages itself contracting and the annual registered births had declined steadily.
When viewed in combination with the share of the population aged 60 years and above being about 16 per cent at present and projected to approach one in five by 2036, if the fertility age and replacement rate is left unattended, this trajectory leads to an ageing society, a shrinking workforce and in time, absolute population decline, the minister warned.
The government’s primary challenge is, therefore, building sustainability of the state’s demographic balance while protecting every gain made in maternal and child health. Tamil Nadu, which led the nation through the demographic transition, will now lead it through the post-transition era, Arunraj declared.
He further said the focus of the health policy would also shift towards non-communicable diseases since Tamil Nadu has become an ageing society with higher cases of hypertension, diabetes and obesity. According to the National Family Health Survey, older adults constitute 16.3 per cent of the population.
This demographic shift requires the health system to respond to the growing demand for long-term management of non-communicable diseases, geriatric services, rehabilitative care and sustained support for healthy ageing.
Besides, Tamil Nadu’s sustained investments in public health had yielded significant gains in the control of communicable diseases and improvements in population health. As a result, the state’s disease burden has undergone a marked epidemiological transition. Today, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) constitute the leading cause of mortality, morbidity and disability, presenting one of the most significant challenges to the health system.
The minister said the TN Public Health Act 1939 is 87 years old and a modern, comprehensive and future-oriented law would be enacted. A positive health policy would be formed and a new app, ‘Nalam 360’, would be introduced with all the information on healthy food, exercise, ways to reduce obesity and mental counselling. Its objective was to lead people to lifestyle modifications.
He said a masterplan for health infrastructure will be prepared. A detailed project report would be prepared for creating a ‘TN medicity’, a city to provide world-class medical facilities, services, research and medical tourism, he said.
He said super speciality medical facilities would be provided in all the districts and 284 vacancies would be created for the scheme. A “Chief Minister’s Elderly Health Insurance Scheme” would be enacted for about 38 lakh senior citizens without any income ceiling.
The minister announced the creation of 2,500 nursing posts on time-scale payment, and comprehensive, free medical check-up would be provided at government medical college hospitals, government hospitals and primary health centres. He announced the recruitment of 3,594 medical staff and the creation of 1,695 nursing posts on consolidated payment.
HIGHLIGHTS
TN women’s reproductive age contracting due to 3 decades of below-replacement fertility
TN to be ageing society with shrinking workforce and absolute population decline
Health policy to shift to non-communicable diseases due to ageing society
New Public Health Act to be enacted, new health policy to be announced
‘Nalam 360’ app to be unveiled with health information
DPR for new ‘medicity’ with medical facilities
Super speciality hospitals in all districts
New insurance scheme for 38 lakh senior citizens
Creation of 2,500 nursing posts on time-scale payment
3,594 medical staff to be recruited, creation of 1,695 nursing posts on consolidated payment
