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Health insurance and primary healthcare are being prioritised to ensure that quality medical services reach people’s doorsteps, Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md Sakawat Hossain said on Thursday.
He made the remarks while addressing a workshop titled “National Health Protection Authority in Bangladesh: Design and Structural Aspects” at the International Mother Language Institute in Dhaka in the morning.
The workshop was organised by the Health Economics Unit under the Health Services Division.
The minister said the government had undertaken extensive plans to ensure healthcare for the people, but implementing all initiatives at once would be difficult. It had therefore decided to set priorities and launch programmes gradually through pilot projects.
He stressed the need to expedite the implementation of the Health Protection Act and related initiatives. Necessary steps were being taken by reviewing and harmonising laws from different countries, he added.
Highlighting the importance of health insurance, Sakawat said people often faced severe financial hardship because they had to pay a substantial portion of their medical expenses out of their own pockets.
“This is extremely distressing,” he said, underscoring the need to strengthen financial protection for people seeking healthcare.
On women’s healthcare, the minister said women, particularly pregnant mothers, must not face embarrassment or harassment while receiving medical services.
The government was planning to transform healthcare centres into one-stop service facilities to ensure better access to essential services, he said.
These centres would introduce screening and diagnostic services using artificial intelligence (AI) to detect breast and cervical cancers. The government also plans to gradually expand the services to the upazila level at affordable costs, he added.
Sakawat said addressing longstanding irregularities and challenges in the health sector required honesty, dedication and coordination among all stakeholders.
The government was committed to gradually ensuring improved and quality healthcare services at every level across the country, he said.
Director General of the Health Economics Unit Dr Md Enamul Haque and officials from different divisions of the ministry attended the workshop.