Medical tests in govt hospitals to be free of cost from March 1

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, February 4

The Department of Health will start providing additional diagnostic treatment in government hospitals free of cost from March 1. A decision in this regard was taken today at a departmental meeting chaired by Health Minister Surinder Singh Negi.

The Department of Health has been pursuing the matter of making more than 50 diagnostics free in all the government hospitals but due to lack of manpower and finances, it had not been able to pursue the matter.

The entire scheme is to be funded through the National Health Mission (NHM). But wherever manpower is available, the hospitals have been asked to provide 30 tests free to all the patients. Further, the Department has been asked to hold health or surgical camps all across the districts.

“We have conducted around 27 camps and soon, more camps will be held. All the doctors will have to compulsorily perform duty at the camp for 22 days,” said officiating DG Kusum Nariyal.

During the camps, the patients with chronic diseases get an opportunity to be referred to a higher centre for treatment and become beneficiaries of Mukhya Mantri Swasthya Beema Yojana (MSBY).

Further, the tenure of private partners engaged for the MSBY scheme has been extended by two months. It will now end in February and the officials will have to invite tenders again. The Health Department has also asked the officials concerned to start the process of establishing trauma centres in public private partnership mode.

The minister was also informed about the help desks set up for the physically challenged patients in district hospitals. These desks have been set up at all hospitals, except at Chamoli and Almora.