PM to launch SEHAT health insurance scheme for Jammu and Kashmir today, 21 lakh people to benefit

26-12-2020

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Saturday launch the AB- Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) SEHAT scheme for Jammu and Kashmir residents that will provide healthcare benefits to 21 lakh eligible people on the basis of the Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC) 2011. Officials said that those eligible will get the Universal Healthcare Coverage (UHC) as per the SECC 2011 database. A senior government official quoted by news agency ANI said that with the launch of SEHAT, all Jammu and Kashmir residents, irrespective of their socio-economic status, will get covered the scheme. �The government is collecting details of beneficiary families who may be missing from the SECC 2011 database. This will ensure that all beneficiaries are enrolled at the earliest so that they can avail free healthcare services,� the official said. The beneficiary identification system like the National Health Authority�s (NHA) information technology platform has been customised to implement this scheme. At least 219 hospitals, including 34 private hospitals, have been empanelled under AB-PMJAY for providing health services to the residents of Jammu and Kashmir. Medical procedures such as oncology, cardiology, nephrology, etc., will be included in the scheme. As far as the portability feature of AB-PMJAY is concerned, beneficiaries can avail the services from any of the 24,148 empanelled hospitals across India. AB-PMJAY is a flagship healthcare programme of the central government that provides a cover of up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation. It covers 10.74 crore poor and vulnerable families (roughly 53 crore beneficiaries). Launched in 2018, more than 1.5 crore beneficiaries have received medical treatment under the scheme so far.