Population health - An antecedent to economic growth

Today technology has brought in a paradigm shift in our lives. It has paved way to globalization, however, it has been pointed out that the benefits of globalization, has not penetrated down to the lower segment of the population. Research in the area of health economics has also reinforced that healthy population is a primary input to economic development. As quality of human capital is an important factor determining economic growth, it has become an issue of predominant importance across nations. In India, to enhance the quality of human capital, interventions have been designed, at national and state levels, to make 'healthcare' affordable, accessible and acceptable across the strata of population. However, the healthcare system in India is confronted by many challenges that deplete the effectiveness of the interventions implemented by the Government. The objective of this paper is to exhibit that population health is an antecedent to economic growth. The paper also tries to describe the health system in India, discuss the serious concerns encountering the health system and concludes by suggesting the key players in the health system to play an active role in enhancing population health, which would thereby trigger the economic growth of the nation.