- The Supreme Court on Tuesday said that a state legislature has no legislative competence to enact a law in respect of modern medicine or allopathic medicine, contrary to the standards that have been determined by the central law.
- It emphasized that policies for enhancing access to rural healthcare must not “short-change” the citizens residing in rural areas or subject them to direct or indirect forms of unfair discrimination on the basis of their place of birth or residence.
- A bench of Justices B.R. Gavai and B.V. Nagarathna said: “Any variation between the standards of qualification required for medical practitioners who render services in rural areas qua the medical practitioners rendering services in urban or metropolitan areas must prescribe to constitutional values of substantive equality and non-discrimination.”
India’s Rural Health Care System:-
- Divided into three-tier (refer to image), the rural healthcare system In India faces an acute shortage of healthcare infrastructure and qualified medical professionals.