CHENNAI: The Apollo Hospitals has welcomed the , the health insurance scheme which was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday. In a press statement, Prathap C Reddy, Chairman, Apollo Hospitals, said the scheme is an historic initiative, which will have positive effect on the health of 50 crore beneficiaries.
Stressing that the insurance coverage should benefit the needy people, he said more focus should be laid on ensuring that the scheme is supported by advanced technology in weeding out the potential fraud. “The private sector is rightly worried about the pricing and reimbursements and must remain paramount in moving forward,” he said.
Echoing a similar view, Suneeta Reddy, Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals, said the scheme with 1,350 procedures covering pre- and post-hospitalisation, diagnostics, medicines packages, including coronary bypass, knee replacements and stenting will be at the rates 15-20 per cent cheaper rates than the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS).
“While the jury is still out on the viability of the costs for private service providers, especially large multi-specialty hospitals which incur high infrastructure and operating costs, make substantial investments in modern technology, in attracting and retaining the best clinical talent and in securing gold standard accreditation, there is no doubt that a beginning has to be made. It is hoped that over a period, after due review these issues will be taken up and resolved to the satisfaction of all stakeholders” she added.
Preetha Reddy, Vice Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals, said the launch of Ayushman Bharat marked a red letter day in the history of Indian healthcare. “Never before have we seen a scheme of such ambitious scale, the first phase of which targets health cover for over 50 crore individuals.”