Cabinet approves national health protection mission -Governance Now

Cabinet approves national health protection mission

The Rs 5 lakh coverage doesn't put restrictions on family size and age

GN Bureau | March 23, 2018

#national health protection mission #health mission #JP Nadda #NHPM

The union cabinet on Thursday approved the centrally sponsored national health protection mission (NHPM) having central sector component under Ayushman Bharat, anchored in the ministry of health and family welfare.

Minister JP Nadda termed the NHPM as a major step towards universal health coverage. It will protect around 50 crore people (from about 10 crore families) from catastrophic healthcare spending.

“This shall boost our resolve to serve the poorest of the poor in the country as there is an increased benefit cover to nearly 40% of the population, covering almost all secondary and many tertiary hospitalizations,” Nadda said.

He said that the coverage of Rs 5 lakh for each family has no restriction of family size and age. “This will give underprivileged families the financial support required when faced with illnesses requiring hospitalization,” he said.

The NHPM will subsume the on-going centrally sponsored scheme Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) and senior citizen health insurance scheme (SCHIS). The families belonging to poor and vulnerable population based on socio economic caste census database shall be benefitted through the Ayushman Bharat-NHPM, the ministry said in a statement.

Nadda said that the beneficiaries can avail of the benefits in both public and empanelled private facilities. “All public hospitals in the States implementing Ayushman Bharat-NHPM, will be deemed empanelled for the scheme. As for private hospitals, they will be empanelled online based on defined criteria,” he said.

He said that the Ayushman Bharat-NHPM will leverage on comprehensive primary health care through health and wellness centres for preventive, promotive and curative care and will ensure seamless continuum of care.

He also said that this will avoid overcrowding and improve quality of care at secondary and tertiary facilities and provide universal health coverage and make services equitable, affordable and accessible.

“Various measures like identity validation through Aadhaar, cost control etc., make the Ayushman Bharat-NHPM easily accessible and transparent in approach,”he said.

Nadda said that Ayushman Bharat-NHPM will also strengthen spirit of cooperative federalism. “NHPM provides ease to be merged with the ongoing health protection or insurance schemes in various ministries and governments,” he said.

Under NHPM, all pre-existing conditions will be covered from day one of the policy. A defined transport allowance per hospitalisation will also be paid to the beneficiary. The benefits of the scheme are portable across the country and a beneficiary covered under the mission will be allowed to take cashless benefits from any public/private empanelled hospitals across the country, Nadda said.

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