THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: There’s good news for haemophilia patients! The Karunya Benevolent Fund will continue to provide assistance to them even after April 1.‘Express’ had earlier reported that haemophilia patients were apprehensive since the KBF would be scrapped and integrated with the new Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi (KASP) on April 1.
As the KASP is an insurance scheme, haemophilia patients will not be included in it. A highly-placed officer of the Health department said the Karunya Benevolent Fund will continue to serve haemophilia patients though other treatment benefits by KBF will be stopped after April 1. “The KBF will continue exclusively for haemophilia patients. They need not be worried,” the officer said.
The KBF has been giving unlimited treatment assistance to haemophilia patients since 2012. It is learnt the government is planning a specia scheme under the Social Security Mission for the haemophilia and organ transplantation patients. The Haemophilia Society of Kerala has welcomed the government decision. “KBF is the best state-run scheme in the country for haemophilia patients.
Our patients need limitless treatment assistance and limited insurance coverage will not help them,” according to Jimmy Manuel, president, Thiruvananthapuram chapter of the Haemophilia Society of Keral.
“In other states, haemophilia patients in a critical condition need approval at different levels to get free injections of clotting factor. The situation was same in Kerala till the KBF was introduced,” he said.
The KBF has already enrolled over 1,500 haemophilia patients who are given identity cards. In the event of bleeding, the patient is required to submit the ID card at the nearest Karunya Pharmacy, along with a government doctor’s prescription, to get injection vials free of cost.