Ranchi: Jharkhand health department signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Tata AIG General Insurance Co-Ltd on Thursday aiming to provide better and cashless health services to state govt employees in advanced health care facilities across the country.Under the new initiative, around 800 hospitals of Jharkhand and across the country have been empanelled where employees and their family members can avail treatment. The initiative has encompassed healthcare facilities of Vellore, Chennai, New Delhi, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.The state govt in Feb last year rolled out a health insurance scheme to offer coverage to state govt staff, pensioners, advocates registered in the state as well as those working in state-run universities, boards and corporations.During the MoU signing ceremony, health minister Irfan Ansari stated that this scheme is not merely an agreement, but a firm commitment ensuring the health security of state employees. ”Due to limited income, employees often face financial crises during times of serious illness; keeping this in mind, the scheme has been implemented in a revamped format. The new framework ensures unlimited cashless facilities, extensive participation from major hospitals, and a transparent operational process,” Ansari said.
He further highlighted that Jharkhand is becoming the first state in the country to provide health insurance cards to all its employees benefitting their families.The minister said that expanding the scope of the scheme, IAS and IPS officers, as well as former MLAs and MPs have also been brought under its coverage, adding, “the health insurance coverage amount under the ‘Abua Card’ scheme has also been increased from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 15 lakh per year.”
