BHUBANESWAR : The Odisha Government Combined Employees’ Association on Thursday expressed its displeasure for being excluded in the cashless health card scheme of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojna (AB PM-JAY).
Though the health scheme has been implemented in the state in convergence with the Gopabandhu Jan Arogya Yojana, members of the association said government employees from various departments have been debarred from this scheme.
The association offered its gratitude for the scheme as it provides a cover of Rs 5 lakh per family per annum, with additional Rs 5 lakh for women members and covers approximately 3.52 crore people of Odisha and can provide healthcare facilities in 29,000 empanelled hospitals all over the country.
The association members submitted a memorandum to Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Health minister Mukesh Mahaling and the chief secretary seeking its implementation for the government employees of Odisha.
Association convenor Bijay Malla said, “Many states and national corporations have provided health insurance to their staff but an exception is that government employees in our state have not been included in this valuable scheme.”
He further urged the chief minister to implement the scheme citing it had been a long-standing demand of the association. The association further threatened to resort to mass dharna from panchayat to state-level if the demand is not fulfilled within a month.