We spend just 1% of our GDP on public health services and rank a dismal 181 amongst 188 countries ranked in terms of HDI indicators. Small countries like Kiribati and Marshall islands spend 14% of GDP on this and Cuba spends 9%. Most OECD countries spend 6–9% of their GDP on public health services.
Rapid growth has made a dent on poverty, but perhaps not enough. Over a quarter of our population still lives below the poverty line. Based on National Sample Survey (NSS)’s 61st  4  BIS Review 169/2010  Round, the poverty ratio was 27.5% in 2004–05, with 28.3% in case of rural areas and 25.7% in case of urban areas.