Page 15 - Insurance Times June 2023

mon network is rolled out, then the He said the scheme would provide While the state has portrayed the hos-
majority of the health insurance cus- health insurance at a very low price pitals' eagerness as a sign of the
tomers will not have to pay a huge and the insured person would get 1 scheme's success and widespread im-
amount to hospitals and wait for reim- lakh a year for health-related issues. pact, industry insiders suggest a differ-
bursement. At present, customers ent motivation. Sources said several
“Employees donated around 15 lakh to
have to settle bills for non-network hospitals perceive the scheme as a lu-
Sanjivani Nidhi. This would be utilised
hospitals and wait for reimbursement crative revenue stream, with annual
for the poor people, orphans, and spe-
because different insurance companies earnings ranging from Rs 20 lakh to Rs
cially abled children. We are spending
have different lists of hospitals. 5 crore from treating patients under its
1,34,750 towards Niramaya health
coverage.
The secretary general of General Insur- scheme,” the collector said.
ance Council, Inderjeet Singh, told TOI In this year's budget, the state made
He thanked the employees and said
that work is on for a common platform an announcement stating that treat-
they are planning to pay the premium
of hospitals for all general insurance ment limit for each family per year
for Sukanya Samruddhi Yojana scheme
companies. "Initiative is on in this di- would be increased from Rs 1.50 lakh
for girls who have lost their fathers or
rection," he said. Singh was in Kolkata to Rs 5 lakh. Additionally, government
mothers.
for the 'Insurance Leaders Meet 2023' said 200 new hospitals will be included
organised by ASSOCHAM. in the scheme to expand its reach.
Over 1,700 hospitals aim
While the financial approvals for the
Later, general manager of National
to join state's apex health expansion are yet to come, the online
Insurance Company T Babu Paul said
applications have been pouring in, said
work for the common platform of hos- scheme
Vinod Bondre, acting CEO of MJPJAY.
pitals is in an advanced stage. "We
Over 1,700 hospitals, ranging from
hope it will be on by the next quarter Of the existing fixed quota of 1,000
small to mid-level, are seeking to join
of this fiscal. The idea is to have one hospitals, 272 are government and the
the state's flagship health scheme,
umbrella for health treatment in cash- remaining private. Bondre said hospi-
Mahatma Jyotirao Phule Jan Arogya
less mode. tals frequently join and exit the
Yojana (MJPJAY). The state recently
scheme. However, ever since the state
announced its intention to expand the
announced plans to expand the
In a first, Vizag dist quota of participating hospitals from
scheme, there has been a notable
1,000 to 1,200, intensifying the com-
launches health insurance surge of interest from hospitals.
petition.
scheme for special children
In a first-of-its-kind initiative in state, Govt to soon link health schemes with Jan Aadhaar
Visakhapatnam district launched If all goes well, a late-evening drive from Delhi three years from now could
Niramaya Health Insurance scheme for "land" you in Kolkata for lunch the next day.
children suffering from autism, cere-
The promise of such a "flight-like" cruise comes from the proposed Varanasi-
bral palsy, mental retardation, multiple
Kolkata greenfield expressway that would make a Delhi-Kolkata trip possible
disabilities, and others.
in 17 hours. It takes several hours more now. The Delhi-Varanasi journey has
District collector Dr A Mallikharjuna already become possible in a little over 10 hours via the Purvanchal, Lucknow-
launched the free health insurance Agra and Yamuna expressways.
scheme. The money for the scheme was
Officials said the Rs 3,000-crore Varanasi-Kolkata expressway is expected to
arranged from Sanjivani Nidhi, funds for
be ready by 2026. Once ready, it is likely to reduce the travel time between
which were donated by government the cities to 6-7 hours. The alignment of the proposed expressway was finalised
employees on New Year's Day. and approved at a meeting in September 2021 led by the Union road trans-
port and highways secretary to connect key cities through the highway and
Collector said the objective of
its spurs to save time and costs.
Niramaya scheme is to provide afford-
able health insurance cover to special The proposed expressway will pass through Mohania, Rohtas, Sasaram,
children. The district has 1,404 chil- Aurangabad, Gaya, Chatra, Hazaribagh, Ranchi, Bokaro, Dhanbad, Ramgarh,
dren with special needs. The district is Purulia, Bankura, Paschim Medinipur, Hooghly and Howrah. Divisional commis-
implementing the scheme with the sioner Kaushal Raj Sharma said initial demarcation of land for the expressway has
help of The Ability People Organisation. been done in Chandauli, near Varanasi, but a detailed project report is awaited.
14 June 2023 The Insurance Times