PM lashes out at Delhi, Bengal govts for not implementing Ayushman scheme
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today lashed out at the Delhi and West Bengal governments for not implementing the Ayushman Bharat health insurance scheme and said the elderly population of these states was being denied the benefits of the expanded scheme because of the “political interests” of the governments there. While New Delhi is governed by Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), TMC’s Mamata Banerjee is the CM of West Bengal.
Modi regretted that the elderly aged above 70 years of Delhi and West Bengal would not benefit from the scheme. “I would get to know about your pains and sufferings but I won’t be able to help you. The reason is that the state governments are not implementing the scheme due to their political interests,” Modi said, while he extended Centre’s flagship health insurance scheme Ayushman Bharat to senior citizens aged 70 years and above. He inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for multiple projects worth around Rs 12,850 crore related to the health sector. The PM announced the launch of the U-win platform that will keep a digitised record of the vaccination process.
The platform will ensure timely administration of life-saving vaccines to pregnant women and children (from birth to 16 years) against 12 vaccine-preventable diseases.
“The world witnessed the success of our Co-win platform during the pandemic and the success of the UPI payment system has become a global story,” he said. In an innovative usage of drone technology to enhance service delivery and make healthcare more accessible, Modi launched drone services at 11 tertiary healthcare institutions. The PM inaugurated the Phase II of country’s first All-India Institute of Ayurveda and three medical colleges at Mandsaur, Neemuch and Seoni in Madhya Pradesh.
He also inaugurated an ESIC hospital at Indore in Madhya Pradesh and laid the foundation stone for such hospitals at Faridabad in Haryana, Bommasandra and Narasapur in Karnataka, Indore in Madhya Pradesh, Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, and Atchutapuram in Andhra Pradesh. These projects are expected to bring healthcare benefits to around 55 lakh ESI beneficiaries.
Five projects under the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for medical devices and bulk drugs in Gujarat, Telangana, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh were also inaugurated. These will manufacture high-end medical devices, such as body implants and critical care equipment, along with important bulk drugs.
Health plan to cover all aged above 70
After the extended coverage of the Ayushman scheme, individuals aged 70 or older will be entitled to an annual coverage of Rs 5 lakh, regardless of their income status.
