Along with rest of the country, the NDA government’s ambitious Ayushman Bharat – National Health Protection Mission/Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-NHPM/PMJAY) was launched across Nagaland on Sunday.
The mission aims to cover over 10 crore vulnerable families (approximately 50 crore beneficiaries) and provide health cover of up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year. More details about this mission can be obtained from the website www.pmjay.gov.in and eligibility can also be checked at www.mera.pmjay.gov.in.
The State launch of the health scheme, considered the largest in the world, was held at Naga Hospital Authority, Kohima (NHAK) and it was formally launched by health minister S Pangnyu Phom in the presence of director of health & family welfare Dr VikeyieLosu.
In his speech, the minister said the scheme was aimed at achieving universal access to quality healthcare services, irrespective of financial status, as every citizen has the right to a healthy life. He urged everyone to check their entitlement eligibility status from the nearest empanelled hospital or common service centres. He said the scheme aims to reduce the burden of out-of-pocket expenditure on hospitalisation by providing entitled beneficiary households a benefit cover up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year for hospitalisation expenses with no cap on family size and age of family members.
About 1,550 health packages comprising of treatment for almost all secondary and tertiary ailments are covered under the scheme. The benefits will be cashless and paperless and can be availed from any of government hospitals or empanelled private hospitals across the country.
Families featuring in the defined Socio Economic & Caste Census (SECC) 2011 database of the State as well as existing enrolled Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) 2016 beneficiary families are entitled for this scheme, covering about 2.33 lakh poor and vulnerable families in the State.
The scheme is entitlement-based as per SECC 2011 and RSBY 2016 data, hence there will be no separate enrolment drive under the scheme.
AB-NHPM/PMJAY e-cards for the first eight beneficiaries, including the first beneficiary to avail the benefits in the State, were distributed by the minister on the occasion.
Similar e-cards were distributed to beneficiaries during the launch in all the districts.
The scheme was also simultaneously launched in all the districts across the State. While PHE minister Jacob Zhimomi launched Ayushman Bharat in Dimapur, fisheries, evaluation, economics & statistics adviser L Khumo launched it in Kiphire. In the remaining districts, deputy commissioners launched the scheme in their respective districts.
For more information on the scheme, citizens can contact helpline numbers – 87948 99089, 90897 76177, 76288, 13737 and 1800 111 565/14555 – or send an email to nagaland.nhpm@gmail.com.
Dimapur: Meanwhile, launching the AB-NHPM/PMJAY at District Hospital Dimapur (DHS), Jacob Zhimomi claimed that the country under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was striving forward with Central schemes like MNREGA and Swachh Bharat.
In the same manner, he said AB-NHPM/PMJAY scheme was launched as Modi was sensitive to the problem of rising medical expenses that had become a huge burden for poor families, who deserved equal medical attention too, he added.
He called upon all citizens of the State to avail benefits of the scheme.
Supplementing a previous statement of Dimapur additional deputy commissioner (ADC) Albert Ezung, Jacob emphasized that the scheme needed to be implemented down to the grassroot levels through seminars and awareness programmes to educate rural people about the scheme.
In this regard, he urged the chief medical officers (CMOs) and district administration to come together and hold seminars across the districts. “Unless we make use of its benefits, the scheme will become redundant,” he cautioned.
Earlier, in his speech, the ADC explained the importance of health. He said the heath sector in the country remained an area of concern as though much advancement was achieved in the realm of medical sciences and the treatments had become sophisticated and specialised, yet all these developments did not percolate down to the common man, both in urban and rural areas.
Talking about the mission, Ezung said it would be a success only if people came forward to avail its benefits and contribute to its implementation.
He called upon the village councils and local functionaries in wards and colonies to play active roles in ensuring successful implementation of the mission.
Chaired by Dimapur CMO Dr Vikato Kinimi, the programme also witnessed distribution of golden records (e-cards) to five beneficiaries by the minister.
Invocation prayer was pronounced by DHD chaplain Rev Yhunlo Thong and vote of thanks was delivered by DHD medical superintendent Dr Z Kheshito Zhimo.