The role of healthcare is more than important at this time of pandemic. But that does not mean everything is good with the sector. Like any other sector, its revenues are expected to take a hit.
According to rating agency ICRA, the revenues of healthcare entities are likely to fall by 15-20 per cent in FY21. Even when revenues fall, the pressure on the sector is likely to keep on increasing. To understand the pain points of the healthcare sector, The Free Press Journal and IIM Indore is organising a webinar with Dr K Hariprasad, President of Apollo Hospitals.
In the upcoming edition of ‘India After COVID-19’ series, Hariprasad will also be seen talking about the way healthcare will evolve post COVID-19.
The session will be held on June 11 at 3 pm. Click here to register.
Hariprasad has two decades of experience in healthcare. He is a President of the Hospitals Division at Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd. and served as its Chief Executive Officer of the Central Division. He is an anaesthesiologist, who joined Apollo Hospitals in the year 1999. Since then, he has moved up in the hierarchy and served as the vice president - medical of Apollo Hospitals Enterprise and as Apollo Hospitals Enterprise’s Consultant Anaesthesiology and Critical Care and Director of Emergency Services.
Apollo Hospitals Enterprises is the country's largest hospital chain. The Chennai-based hospital chain reported a consolidated income of Rs 9,648.88 crore in FY 2018-2019 and had reported a growth of 106 per cent in consolidated net profit at Rs 206.86 crore. It may be recalled that Apollo Hospital was the first in India to declare itself as a corporate hospital, approached the capital markets and got itself listed on Indian stock exchanges. Till then all hospitals called themselves charitable hospitals.
Private hospitals like Apollo, which is one among the few private hospitals that are allowed to treat COVID-19 patients, may suffer huge losses in Q1. According to ICRA, the entities in the healthcare sector are expected to report an over 50 per cent drop in revenues in April and May with a gradual pick-up thereafter. The monthly revenue run rate is expected to reach the pre-COVID-19 levels in the second half of FY21, but that is only possible if normalcy is achieved.
