India Must Learn from US Healthcare Failures, Not Repeat Them

India has long looked to the US for healthcare inspiration. The latest trend? Value-Based Care, tying provider payments to patient outcomes. Sounds good in theory. In reality, it's largely failed in the US, and India must chart its own path instead of replicating value-based care gone wrong.

The problem

In the US, costs are sky-high ($15,000+ per person), outcomes are underwhelming, and VBC adds complexity and compliance burden, up to 20% of revenue. India's healthcare system, with its resource constraints and local realities, cannot absorb this model.

Healthcare is deeply local

India's needs are unique: rural access gaps, a high burden of chronic and infectious disease, a large informal workforce, and low public health funding. The US model doesn't solve these, it makes them worse. Other nations offer insights but no perfect model: the UK has equity but long waits, Canada has access but pharma/dental gaps, Germany has coverage but high cost, Japan has affordability but hospital overuse. India must adapt best practices, not adopt models blindly.

What India should do instead

India already has powerful assets: generic pharma leadership, a strong hybrid public-private ecosystem, digital health success (CoWIN, eSanjeevani), ASHAs and community health networks, and innovative schemes like Ayushman Bharat. The path forward: increase public health funding, expand primary care access, set clear local health outcomes, use tech to simplify care, foster public-private partnerships, and scale what's already working locally.