THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : As the Health Department gets ready to sign the MOU with the Health Ministry for joining the Centre’s flagship ‘Ayushman Bharat- National Health Protection Scheme’ (AB-NHPS),the Indian Medical Association (IMA) state committee has raised questions over its implementation.
According to the IMA, concerns, including impractical rates for procedures in the AB-NHPS, exist and the state government should look into all aspects before signing the MOU. The IMA which had convened a meeting of various organisations to discuss the implementation of AB-NHPS observed there is a practical difficulty in implementing the said scheme under the existing conditions.
“The meeting was attended by around eight organisations, including the Kerala Private Hospitals’ Association and Qualified Private Medical Practitioners’ Association. Several issues including impractical rates, liability to hospitals, involvement of middlemen like insurance agencies and others were discussed in detail,” said Dr N Sulphi, IMA state president.
According to him, the government will be informed about the outcome of the meeting.
Earlier, the Health Department had stated though it has decided to join the AB-NHPS, it is also looking forward to a report being prepared by a six-member committee headed by D Narayana, Gulati Institute of Finance and Taxation (GIFT) director.
The committee will present a report after devising the procedure and working out the cost to be covered under Ayushman scheme. The state government had initially voiced concerns on the AB-NHPS, stating a majority of the people might lose the existing insurance coverage and might result in the exchequer being forced to bear the additional burden.