Women and child healthcare were among the key priorities in the announcements made by Tamil Nadu Health Minister K.G. In a first, the State government will formulate a ‘Peri-Menopausal Care Policy’ to enable early identification of the physical and mental health needs of women in the peri-menopausal age group, along with screening, counselling and treatment services. Arunraj in the Legislative Assembly on Monday (August 17, 2026).
An Autism Early Detection Programme will be launched to screen children for autism spectrum disorder. The department will launch rare genetic disease screening for newborns. This will include congenital hypothyroidism, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, galactosemia and biotinidase deficiency. The intrauterine/womb-like environments will be set up at the Institute of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in Chennai and government medical college hospitals in Madurai, Coimbatore, Tirunelveli, Chengalpattu and Tiruchi. Transport ventilators for newborns, modern equipment for human milk banks, mother and newborn care units, administration of ferric carboxy maltose injections for pregnant women with moderate anaemia and adolescent girls with severe anaemia and strengthening maternal and child care infrastructure were among other announcements.
Bluetooth-enabled blood pressure (BP) monitors will be introduced to track BP in pregnant women, with real-time transmission of data to facilitate timely intervention, while children under 18 with type 1 diabetes will receive free year-round insulin supply in government hospitals at a cost of ₹9.94 crore. Haemoglobin estimation will be done for nearly 16.5 lakh adolescents studying in classes VI, IX and XI in government and government-aided schools and appropriate treatment and monitoring will be done. Nearly 4.5 lakh babies delivered in all government hospitals in the State will be screened for seven rare genetic diseases in a hub-and-spoke model. Neo Genesis Unit for extreme low birth weight babies will be set up at a cost of ₹16.81 crore. For this, 12,456 village health nurses and 5,000 doctors will be trained. A Childhood Obesity Prevention Programme will be launched in schools, while a School Orthodontic Treatment programme will be rolled out in five districts — Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Kancheepuram, Kallakurichi and Virudhunagar — covering 1,500 children at a cost of ₹1.80 crore.
Under the peri-menopausal policy, camps would be conducted on a specific day every week at all primary health centres (PHC) and urban PHCs for symptomatic assessment, basic tests, counselling and referrals for treatment at district headquarters hospitals and government medical college hospitals, according to the announcement. “Irumbu Kanmani” – School Anaemia Prevention will be rolled out at a cost of ₹6.37 crore.
