Patients deprived of health insurance benefits

Sameer Singh
Tribune News Service
Bathinda, September 28

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More than a month has elapsed since the Ayushman Bharat-Sarbat Sehat Bima Yojana was launched, but not even a single surgery (operation) has been performed under the scheme at the orthopaedic unit of the Civil Hospital. The insurance card holders under the scheme are being asked by doctors to either get the operations done at private hospitals in the city or visit Government Medical College and Hospital, Faridkot, for treatment.

Sources in the Health Department said medical implants had not been procured by the hospital. Adequate medical equipment is available at the Civil Hospital to conduct a surgery. Besides, medicines are also available. But in the absence of implants, operations cannot be conducted.

A senior official at the hospital said that it is surprising that the government has been laying more emphasis to make as the maximum number of cards so that a large number of people can avail benefits under the scheme, but the Civil Hospital lacks adequate infrastructure to implement the same at the grassroots level. Around 30 cardholders have visited the hospital to get treatment, but they were referred to other hospitals, he added.

Kusum Lata (name changed), a patient who needs to undergo knee-replacement surgery and got a card made under the scheme recently, said, “Tall claims of the government to provide a health insurance cover (free treatment) up to Rs5 lakh for the needy patients have fallen flat when it comes to providing medical services to the lower-rung of the public health sector. We were asked to visit a private hospital in the city to get the operation done. What is the use of such a coveted scheme if the needy patients like us cannot avail its benefits?”

Another patient Gurpratap Singh (name changed) said, “Last year, my mother was operated upon for spine at the Civil Hospital. We had to pay for the implants and even medicines. Now, my father has problems in his joints. We got the card made under the Ayushman Bharat Sarbat Sehat Bima Yojana, but it has proved to be a futile exercise as he cannot be operated upon for want of medical implants. Since we do not have a financial backing now, we have to travel to Faridkot.”

Notably, the issue of irregularity in the procurement of medical equipment or medicines at the Civil Hospital had surfaced earlier this year. A probing committee was also constituted to investigate the matter thoroughly.

A doctor at the Civil Hospital said if benefits of the scheme are to be provided to the needy patients, procurement and streamlined supply of implants has to done on a war footing. There are more than 100 different types of implants, which are required to be procured to provide medical services under the scheme. Senior Medical Officer Dr Satish Goyal could not be contacted.

Civil Surgeon Dr Amrik Singh Sandhu said, “We are still grappling with initial hiccups in implementing the scheme on a full-fledged basis. We have brought the issue to the notice of senior officials, who have have assured us of working out a solution. There are some procedural problems related to procurement of implants. Other specialty units have been providing benefits under the scheme.”

“A proposal was moved to the Chairman of Red Cross, B Srinivasan, who is also the Deputy Commissioner, stating that procurement of implants should be brought under the Jan Aushadhi scheme so that it can be procured by the Health Department on subsidised rates, but it could not be materialised,” Dr Sandhu added.