₹1,140.75 crore paid as this year’s premium for CMCHIS

CHENNAI

The Health Department on Tuesday paid ₹1,140.75 crore as this year’s premium for the Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme (CMCHIS) to United India Insurance Company. Along with this, it paid last year’s pending premium of ₹59.37 crore.

Handing over a cheque for around ₹1,200 crore to company representatives, Health Minister Ma. Subramanian said that on January 10, 2022, an agreement was signed to extend CMCHIS for five more years. Accordingly, 95% of the premium — ₹1,128 crore — was paid for the benefit of 1,39,87,495 families, with the premium per family being ₹849, he said.

From January 11, 2021 to January 10, 2022, 7,49,227 persons had benefited from the scheme, and for this, a premium of ₹1,227.35 crore was paid. The scheme, launched in 2009, had benefited a total of 1,23,32,744 persons till December 30, 2022.

“We have now paid the premium of ₹1,140.75 crore for the second year and the remaining 5% premium of ₹59.37 crore for last year,” he said.

Comparing the scheme’s features during the previous government, he said the premium was ₹699 then and increased to ₹849 now. From covering treatment of 1,027 diseases, the scheme now covered 1,513 treatments, he said, adding that the number of empanelled hospitals had increased from 970 to 1,733.

A total of 1,320 children, who lost their parents to COVID-19, were brought under CMCHIS. Apart from this, 1,414 families of media persons were also covered. A total of 520 residents of the Institute of Mental Health were issued CMCHIS cards.