• Telangana households paid nearly ₹39 out of every ₹100 spent on healthcare in 2022-23, according to the National Health Accounts (NHA) Estimates.
• Families spent ₹10,249 crore from their own pockets on healthcare during the year, compared with ₹10,692 crore spent by the government.
• Out-of-pocket expenditure accounted for 39.4% of Telangana's total health expenditure, below the national average of 43.4%, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare reported.
Households in Telangana paid nearly ₹39 out of every ₹100 spent on healthcare in 2022-23, highlighting the continued burden of out-of-pocket medical expenses despite substantial government spending, according to the National Health Accounts (NHA) Estimates for India released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The report showed that families spent ₹10,249 crore from their own pockets during the year, only slightly less than the ₹10,692 crore spent by the government on healthcare.
According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's National Health Accounts (NHA) Estimates 2022-23, out-of-pocket expenditure accounted for 39.4% of Telangana's total health expenditure, while government health expenditure contributed 41.1%.
Telangana's total health expenditure was estimated at ₹26,040 crore in 2022-23, equivalent to 2% of the state's Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP). Per capita health expenditure stood at ₹6,853.
Out-of-pocket expenditure refers to healthcare costs paid directly by patients and families for consultations, medicines, diagnostic tests, and treatments that are not covered by insurance or government health schemes.
NHA data indicate that households continue to bear a significant share of healthcare costs despite the expansion of public health programmes and insurance coverage. High out-of-pocket spending can place a financial strain on households, particularly those managing chronic illnesses that require long-term medication, regular tests, or repeated medical visits.
Lower out-of-pocket spending is generally considered a sign of better financial protection because it reduces the risk of families facing financial hardship due to medical expenses.
Data from the NHA report indicate that medicines continue to be a major driver of healthcare spending across India. Prescribed pharmaceuticals accounted for a significant share of current health expenditure, while spending through pharmacies increased during 2022-23. The findings suggest that outpatient care, medicines, diagnostic services, and other expenses not fully covered by insurance schemes continue to contribute substantially to household healthcare costs.
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The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare reported that households accounted for 43.4% of India's total health expenditure in 2022-23, compared with 39.4% in Telangana. Government spending represented 43.7% of total health expenditure nationally, slightly higher than Telangana's 41.1%.
National trends showed a reversal of the gains seen during the COVID-19 period. According to the National Health Accounts Estimates 2022-23, India's out-of-pocket expenditure rose to 43.4% of total health expenditure from 39.4% in 2021-22, marking the first increase after years of decline. At the same time, government health expenditure as a share of total health expenditure fell from 48% to 43.7%, reflecting a reduction in pandemic-related public health spending.
In absolute terms, Indian households spent ₹3.83 lakh crore from their own pockets on healthcare in 2022-23, compared with ₹3.56 lakh crore in the previous year. The increase has been linked to higher spending on consultations, diagnostic services, medicines, and greater utilisation of private healthcare services after the pandemic period.
The NHA estimates also showed that Telangana's government health expenditure share declined from 46.2% in 2021-22 to 41.1% in 2022-23. During the same period, per capita government health expenditure fell from ₹3,007 to ₹2,814, while per capita out-of-pocket expenditure increased from ₹2,449 to ₹2,697.
Among southern states, Andhra Pradesh recorded a much higher out-of-pocket expenditure share of 59.6%, while Tamil Nadu reported 38.7%.
Although Telangana's reliance on out-of-pocket healthcare spending was lower than the national average, the NHA estimates indicate that households continue to bear a significant share of medical expenses, highlighting the ongoing challenge of improving access to affordable healthcare and financial protection.
Reference:
1. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. National Health Accounts Estimates for India 2022–23. New Delhi: National Health Accounts Technical Secretariat, National Health Systems Resource Centre, 2026. Accessed June 2, 2026.
https://nhsrcindia.org/sites/default/files/2026-05/NHA%202022-23%20Report.pdf
(Rh/TP/MSM)