Providing primary healthcare will be constitutionally obligatory for the government, according to the recommendation of Health Sector Reform Commission.
The members of the commission, led by its chief Prof AK Azad Khan, handed over the recommendations to Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus at the state guest house Jamuna today.
Among its key proposals, the commission recommended the formation of an independent health commission to oversee and regulate the country’s healthcare system. It also called for the establishment of a separate public health service dedicated to serving the people of Bangladesh.
The commission chairman and members were briefing media at Foreign Services Academy when the report was filed around 12:20pm.
In November 2024, the government formed a 12-member Health Sector Reform Commission.
The members of the commission are Prof AK Azad Khan (chief), president of Diabetic Association of Bangladesh; Professor Mohammad Jakir Hossain, public health and health informatics specialist, BSMMU; Professor Liyakot Ali, chairman, Pothikrit Foundation; Professor Sayeba Akter, gynecologist; Professor Nayela Zaman Khan, Department of Pediatric Neuroscience; MM Reza, former secretary; Professor Mozaherul Haque, WHO Southeast Asia regional adviser; Azharul Islam, icddr,b; Professor Syed Md Akram Hussain, Square Cancer Centre; Professor Syed Atikul Haque, chief consultant, Green Life Center for Rheumatic Care and Research; Ahmed Ahsanul Rahman, scientist, Child and Maternal Health Department, icddr,b, and Umayer Afif, a 5th-year student of Dhaka Medical College.
