Treat health as a public good, not a market opportunity
On World Humanitarian Day, the article argues that health should be treated as a public good rather than a market opportunity, particularly in South Asia. It highlights how profit-driven systems and inefficient policies force families into poverty due to high out-of-pocket medical expenses.
Why it matters
It addresses the systemic failure of healthcare accessibility and the economic consequences of treating essential medical care as a commodity.
On World Humanitarian Day, observed on August 19, we honour the people who provide care in crises and the communities who endure them. Often when we look at health crises, we look at large-scale disasters such as disease outbreaks, armed conflict or extreme weather events. But, on this day, let us push the envelope a little further and talk about the kind of crisis that does not show up at our doorstep overnight. This is the kind of health and humanitarian crisis that brews over years, decades, feeding off inefficient policies and profit-driven systems.
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