According to a report released on Thursday, India requires 2 billion square feet of healthcare space to accommodate its 1.42 billion-person population. As required by the World Health Organization (WHO), India currently has less than two million beds.
The Global Healthcare Report from real estate consulting firms Knight Frank and Berkadia states that India has 1,3 beds per 1,000 people, including public and private facilities. The WHO says that it ought to be three per 1,000.
It is substantially less than 13 in Japan, 4.3 in China, 2.9 in the USA, and 2.5 in the UK.
Considering how quickly the Indian healthcare market is expanding, this gap is critical. The Indian healthcare market will probably be worth $ 372 billion in 2022, a substantial increase from $73 billion in 2012.
Moreover, the industry’s size is expanding at a rapid rate due to two factors. First, the World Bank reports that India’s population growth (1.42 billion) exceeds that of China (1.41 billion). However, the official figures are uncertain because the Centre has yet to undertake the Census exercise first scheduled for 2021.
Secondly, India is one of the most popular medical tourism destinations, making further investment in this field necessary.
Between 2014 and 2019, the number of foreign visitors with medical visas increased by 30% annually in the pre-pandemic years. Of 46 international travel destinations, India ranked tenth in the Medical Tourism Index (2020-21). In 2022, the Center also launched the “Heal in India” campaign to promote medical travel.
The report’s data indicates that India offers significantly cheaper medical procedure costs than its Asian counterparts. For instance, the cost of a coronary artery bypass is $ 17,200 in Singapore and $ 26,000 in South Korea. In India, it costs $7,900.
A different operation, replacing a heart valve, costs $39,900 in South Korea, $ 17,200 in Thailand and Turkey, $ 16,900 in Singapore, and $ 9,500 in India. In South Korea, knee and hip replacements cost $ 21,000, while in Thailand, the same procedure costs $ 17,000. It costs $ 7,200 in India.
Knight Frank India chairman and managing director Shishir Baijal stated, “To adequately meet the expanding healthcare requirements of the population, addressing this demand necessitates nearly doubling the current real estate capacity.”
“Healthcare is one of the main options for investors seeking long-term income-generating investments after the pandemic.”
The report states that the industry anticipates strong demand due to shifting global demographics.
“Despite a grim economic outlook, the global healthcare sector is still growing and is predicted to continue doing so. It coincides with the fast aging of the world’s population, which will continue to increase demand for elderly care beds, especially for full-time nursing care provided in specialized facilities,” the report stated.