At the State Level Workshop on Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojna, Health and Family Welfare Minister Kaul Singh Thakur revealed that more than 93000 smart card holders had been benefited under Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojna (RSBY) by providing cashless treatment of Rs. 38.23 crore in the State.
The Minister said that now MGNRGS workers, street vendors, building and other construction workers and persons with more than 70 percent disability had been included under the RSBY since 1st January, 2013 besides BPL families.
Kaul Singh Thakur said that RSBY Plus (Critical Care) was major initiative taken by the State under which cashless benefits of Rs.1.75 lakh were being provided exclusively for the treatment of Cardiac and Cardiothoracic Surgeries, Genito Urinary Surgeries, Nerosurgeries, Radiation Oncology, Trauma, Transplant Surgeries, Spinal Surgeries, Surgical, Gastroenterology, Hemophilia and Cancer for all the Smart Card Holders. He said that at present Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, Dr. Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College Kangra at Tanda and PGI had been empanelled for RSBY Plus, adding that this scheme was being run through State Nodal Agency instead of Insurance Company.
The Minister said that State had implemented RSBY in all the 12 districts to provide free medical treatment to BPL family of five members, with a maximum coverage of Rs. 30,000 per year on floater, cashless and paperless basis adding that the scheme was widely perceived as the pivotal axis of the poor to get cashless treatment from nearby hospital.
He said that ayurveda treatment was also covered under the scheme and now 22 ayurvedic hospitals had been empanelled for providing the treatment from 1st January, 2013 adding that the smart card holders were free to get treatment in any of the empanelled hospitals in the country.
Kaul Singh Thakur said that the State Government was committed to provide best health care facilities to the people of the State and State had a vast health infrastructure which was better than national average. He said that health indicators of the State were one of the best in the country adding that IMR had come down to 38, child sex ratio had improved to 914, institutional deliveries had gone upto 76 percent, fertility rate had dropped to 1.9 and birth rate to 16.9 percent.
The Minister said that Weekly Iron and Folic Acid Supplementation Programme (WIFS) aimed to cover all adolescent girls and boys studying in sixth to 12th class in Government Schools had also been launched in the State. He said that under this programme approximately seven lakh students of the Government schools were being provided Iron and Folic Acid tablets once a week along with their teachers and helpers. He said that Nodal Teacher in each school had been trained to screen for moderate or severe anaemia and refer the affective children to nearest Primary Health Centre for treatment.
Anil Swarup, Director General, Labour Welfare, Government of India said that Himachal Pradesh had emerged as role model for implementing the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojna in the country and other States were following the pattern adopted by Himachal Pradesh. He lauded the role of Himachal Pradesh for bringing the Ayurveda under RSBY and said that this pattern would also be implemented at the National level.
Ali R. Rizvi, Principal Secretary, Health urged for adopting a process of revalidation of Smart Cards. He detailed out salient features of the Scheme. Amitabh Awasthi, Chief Executive Officer, H.P. Swasthya Bima Yojna also spoke on the occasion. Dr. Ramesh Chand, Senior Medical Superintendent, IGMC, Shimla Senior Officers of Health Department, Stakeholders and participants from different parts of the State also attended the workshop.
