After RTI findings, Punjab govt claims 18,714 Covid patients benefited under Ayushman Bharat scheme
India Today
The state government's response comes a day after an RTI enquiry by India Today revealed that not a single Covid patient availed the healthcare scheme in Punjab.
The Punjab state Health Agency (SHA) on Wednesday said that over seven lakh people, of which 18,714 were Covid-19 patients, have benefitted from the Ayushman Bharat scheme in the state. The government's response comes a day after an RTI enquiry by India Today revealed that not a single Covid patient availed the healthcare scheme in Punjab, among a few other states."About 40 lakh families have been covered under Ayushman Bharat Yojna called Sarbat Sehat Bima Yojna in Punjab. This is the second year of this scheme in Punjab and so far seven lakh treatments have been done amounting to Rs 780 crore. This includes Covid patients as well. The present per day arrival for SSBY is 1,000 beneficiaries. The numbers were between 1,500 to 1,600 earlier. 1,579 medical procedures were being covered under Ayushman Bharat scheme," Kumar Rahul, CEO, Punjab Health Agency told India today.It is worth mentioning here that the state government has empanelled 241 public and 626 private hospitals under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. While the Centre, under the scame, had fixed reimbursement of charges ranging from Rs 1,800 to Rs 4,500 per day , the state government recently increased the reimbursement to Rs 8,000 to Rs 18,000 per day if someone is admitted to a private hospital. Over 1,579 procedures can be availed for free in public hospitals by beneficiaries. ALSO READ | Punjab: Covid-19 positivity rate drops but death rate has authorities worried Despite the claims made by the State Health Agency, many people have complained that they did not get any benefit despite having registered for the Ayushman Bharat scheme.The alleged Covid-19 kit scam and sale of Covid-19 vaccines in private hospitals has put the Punjab government in the dock. The state government has denied the allegations."My government has always prioritised human lives and playing politics and spreading misinformation in times of a pandemic is extremely unfortunate and ill-conceived. We have distributed 7,475 Fateh Kits, covering 80.92 per cent of the currently active cases in home isolation," chief minister Captain Amrinder Singh said.More Related News