BHUBANESWAR: The state government on Tuesday extended Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY) benefits to the children and adolescents in the age group of five to 18 years of families covered under the health assurance scheme.
The scheme provides annual health coverage of Rs 5 lakh per family and an additional Rs 5 lakh for the women members after exhaustion of initial limit. While children below five years were already covered on the basis of self-declaration by the BSKY card-holder, those in the age group of five to 18 years and not in the database of National Food Security Act (NFSA) or State Food Security Scheme (SFSS) were left out.
BSKY set to cover 5-18 yr age group
The state government took a decision to extend the health coverage to the children and adolescents of BSKY beneficiaries after the State Health Assurance Society (SHAS), which empanels private hospitals under the scheme, came to know that some child members were left out as their names were not in the NFSA/SFSS database.
Health secretary Shalini Pandit said the state government has approved to extend the BSKY benefits to the child members of NFSA/SFSS families whose names are not in the database. “They can avail the benefits under the health scheme on production of documentary evidence by the parent to support the claim that the individual being treated is their child,” she said. The Health and Family Welfare department has informed all BSKY-empanelled hospitals to extend health coverage to the beneficiaries, aged five to 18 years as per the documentary evidence submitted by their parents. The annual health coverage applicable to the child and adolescent beneficiaries are, however, same as their parents.