Centre’s Ayushman Bharat crosses 1 lakh subscribers in 30 days
We don’t promote the offline mechanism because internet connectivity is a temporary problem and will improve with time. It’s all about getting used to software INDU BHUSHAN , CEO Ayushman Bharat
NEW DELHI: The Centre’s flagship health insurance scheme, Ayushman Bharat-pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojna (AB-PMJAY), has crossed the one-lakh beneficiary mark within a month of its September 23 launch.
“A 46-year-old from MP (Madhya Pradesh) admitted in Rewa, becomes the 1,00,000th beneficiary under #Ayushmanbharat PMJAY. He undergoes Posterior Cervical Fusion with implant, a neurological treatment costing ~50,000 at Vindhya Hospital and Research Centre,” Union health minister Jagat Prakash Nadda tweeted on Sunday.
Ayushman Bharat CEO Indu Bhushan said the implementation of the scheme should stabilize in about three months. And in a year or two, the real impact at the population level will show, added Bhushan.
Bhushan said the systems, especially the IT system, which is the backbone of the scheme, are working satisfactorily. “There, however, are some teething troubles as it is a new system.”
Two lakh beneficiary cards have been distributed. “We are identifying beneficiaries who visit hospitals. And those who want to find out about their eligibility, they can call up the call centre at 14555,” said Bhushan.
Vineet Kumar, who issues cards under the scheme at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS), Rohtak, Haryana, said they rely on Socioeconomic Caste Census 2011 data to identify the beneficiaries.
“…Around 200 people want to register each day, but roughly about 40-50 find their names on the list.”
He said the It-based platform makes it easy to track patients, maintain records and reimburse the money. “There are also fewer chances of fraud as any duplication or another anomaly will be easily picked up by the software.”
Close to 7,000 government hospitals are empanelled and treat- ing patients under the scheme. No private hospital is yet empanelled. About 8,000 hospitals are in the process of being empanelled.
As the scheme is It-based, it is facing some glitches in places where internet connectivity is an issue. The government has had to also devise an off-line module for its implementation.
“We do not promote the off-line mechanism because internet connectivity is a temporary problem and will improve with time. It is all about getting used to the software and once that happens everything will be streamlined,” said Bhushan.
Till that happens there will also be cases like that of Ramesh, who died of a lung disorder at Rohtak’s PGIMS. “We were told that my husband’s treatment and medicines will be covered under the scheme. But they asked us to pay first and keep the bills, and assured us to compensate for them later as they were just starting the scheme here at that time. Later, when we approached them with bills, we were given nothing,” said Geeta Devi, his widow.
Former All India Institute of Medical Sciences (Delhi) director M C Misra said any such scheme is a wonderful idea. He said it us so only until a robust mechanism is devised to implement it with accountability, transparency and honesty on both sides i.e. execution side and healthcare providers side.
“Above all provision of adequate funds for the implementation is a must.”