Health dept to introduce accident insurance scheme: Minister

The Department of Health and Family Welfare will launch an accident insurance scheme which will be the first of its kind in Asia and the government will provide Rs 25,000 to victims within 48 hours under the scheme.

Addressing media persons here on Tuesday, Health and Family Welfare U T Khader said the scheme is being introduced to facilitate urgent treatment of injured persons in emergency situations. So far, 284 hospitals have been added to the scheme. The bill amount can be claimed even if  the hospitals have not been added. The scheme will be useful in the cases where the injured are admitted to the hospitals by persons who are not familiar to them, he added.

The minister said Rs 5,000 will be provided to small scale hospitals, Rs 15,000 at medium hospitals and Rs 25,000 at large hospitals. The Cabinet has approved for Rs 73 crore for this purpose. In this, Rs 10 crore has been released, he added.

He also said that the Union government has plans to implement the scheme nationwide. Also, the programme of providing generic drugs at government hospitals will be implemented by the State government and this model too, will be adopted by the Union Government, he said.

Khader said that GPS system will be installed in 108 ambulances.

Responding to a question, Khader said the earlier contractor of the Lady Goschen Hospital’s new building has been blacklisted by the department and the work has been handed over to a new contractor. The work will restart soon, he said.

India Pharma 2016 and India Medical Expo - 2016, an international exhibition and conference on pharmaceutical industry, medical electronics and device sector, will be held at Bengaluru International Exhibition Centre, Nelamangala, Bengaluru, on January 7 and 8, he added.

Criticising the move of Prime Minister Narendra Modi of visiting Pakistan, Khader said India should be firm on its stand regarding its relations with Pakistan.

He said there is no meaning in the prime minister’s and external affairs minister meeting their Pakistan counterparts when the cross border issues have not been addressed to by neighbouring country.