National Health Insurance Scheme could be game changer: Anil Swarup

Anil Swarup, Director General of Labour Welfare (Ministry of Labour and Employment) on Tuesday said that the Rashtriya Swasthaya Bima Yojana (RSBY) or National Health Insurance Scheme can be a game changer with a promise of access to cashless hospitalisation for over thousand aliments for the people living Below Poverty Line (BPL) and unorganised sector workers.

Swarup, who is credited as the architect of the ambitious public health insurance scheme was addressing a gathering of civil society organizations from across seven states here.

"Enrolment in the scheme cannot be the only concern as the utilization of the provisions by poorest communities for whom the scheme exists is equally important. For RSBY to be truly successful, we need to make the communities aware about its benefits," said Swarup.

The event was attended by over 150 participants who are part of the civil society organizations network that Poorest Areas Civil Society (PACS) works with for implementation and utilization of insurance schemes.

RSBY was launched by Ministry of Labour and Employment to provide health insurance coverage for BPL families.

The objective of RSBY is to provide protection to BPL households, and now MGNREGA workers, from financial liabilities arising out of health shocks that involve hospitalisation.

Beneficiaries under RSBY are entitled to hospitalisation coverage up to Rs.30, 000/- for most of the diseases that require hospitalisation.

Government has even fixed the package rates for the hospitals for a large number of interventions. (ANI)