A group of about 30 experts, commissioned by the medical journal Lancet, has called for major changes in India’s healthcare system. They want an “integrated, citizen-centred health-care delivery system that is publicly financed and publicly provided as the primary vehicle for Universal Health Coverage.” The report, published online on January 21, 2026, also says the private sector should be guided to support healthcare goals. The experts recommend shifting focus from just professional qualifications to also valuing “competencies, values, and motivations” of healthcare workers. They stress empowering frontline workers and practitioners of Indian traditional medicines like Ayurveda and Yoga. Members of the commission include academics from Harvard Medical School, Johns Hopkins University, Ashoka University, and Indian Institutes of Public Health and Management. The report highlights hurdles in insurance laws that block integrated care and calls for digital technologies to boost reforms. Technologies like artificial intelligence and genomics can help deliver advanced, local healthcare. The report urges giving more financial and management control to state and local governments to design better health services. It suggests moving from detailed line-item budgets to global budgets to encourage quality care and accountability. India spends less than 2% of GDP on public health, below the 2.5% target, and out-of-pocket expenses are still very high. Poonam Muttreja, executive director of Population Foundation of India, said, “If public health is only planned from the top down, it cannot be effective. Bringing the public into public health entails making room for people’s priorities, experiences, and opinions to influence policymaking.” The commission also said India can play a stronger role globally as other powers step back from global health leadership.