Bhubaneswar: All rural families of Odisha except regular government employees and income tax payees, who are presently not covered under Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana will be now eligible to receive the “BSKY Nabin Card”.
Launching the BSKY Nabin Card on Friday, in the third phase of BSKY, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said all left out families of rural areas of Odisha will be assured of cashless health care in private hospitals for critical ailments.
This will entitle them to cashless care of Rs five lakh per annum (upto 10 lakh for women members of the family), in empanelled private hospitals both inside and outside the State, for identified critical illnesses, Patnaik said.
He further said the BSKY Nabin card will ensure that no family in Odisha is left vulnerable due to lack of financial resources to meet high expenditure for critical illnesses thus fulfilling the promise of universal health coverage for the people of Odisha.
With this third phase of expansion, it is estimated that over 1.10 crore families, covering nearly 90 percent of the population of the State, will be provided health assurance under BSKY.
The Chief Minister said “Sustha Odisha, Sukhi Odisha” has been the driving force behind all interventions in the health sector in Odisha.
It has been my dream to provide universal health coverage to the people of Odisha, where healthcare is a right accessible and affordable by all, Patnaik said.
The Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana was launched five years ago bringing about a revolution in providing health assurance to the people of Odisha.
In the first phase of BSKY, all services in public health facilities were made free of cost for all persons, irrespective of income or residence.
In the second phase, BSKY provided cashless health care in private health facilities for all ration card holders.
Under BSKY, every month over 45 lakh persons receive free health care at public health facilities in the State, while 1.3 lakh persons receive cashless care. This amounts to Rs. 260 crores each month in empanelled private hospitals.
Official sources said during the last five years, BSKY has provided nearly 21 lakh patients with cashless healthcare of about Rs 4,500 crores in private hospitals alone.
The Chief Minister said the BSKY has thus become a unique model for universal health coverage, leveraging the strengths of both the public and private sectors to provide comprehensive health assurance to the people of Odisha.
