1,000 avail benefits from first day after the launch of ‘Modicare’

Around one lakh people witnessed the launch of a unique healthcare scheme launched by our Prime Minister. In less than one day, more than 1,000 patients across the country have availed the benefits of Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY). The Maximum cases were reported from Chhattisgarh and Haryana, followed by Jharkhand, Assam and Madhya Pradesh. 

Addressing a gathering of over one lakh people at Prabhat Tara Ground, Modi added that the scheme was being launched with an intention to make premium health facilities available to each and every person in the country. 

The inauguration of the country’s largest health insurance scheme comes a month after a pilot programme was announced by the Prime Minister in his Independence Day address. The announcement was made in the Union Budget of 2018. 

Punam Mahato became the first beneficiary of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) in Jharkhand after giving birth to a baby girl at a hospital in Jamshedpur. 

When we started the pilot of AB-PMJAY in Haryana, the first baby was also a girl named Karishma. We named her Ayushman Devi, inspired by the scheme’s name. This is really heartening that the first baby, after the formal launch of the scheme, is also a girl. Our government is promoting the girl child in a big way and this event is in tune with that.

Union health minister J.P. Nadda 

The scheme provides a cover of up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year, for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation through a network of Empanelled Health Care Providers (EHCP). The EHCP network gives cashless and paperless access to services for the beneficiaries at both public and private hospitals. The services includes 1,350 procedures covering pre- and post-hospitalization, diagnostics and medicines.

In addition to the insurance plan, under Ayushman Bharat, the government also aims to open 1.5 lakh health and wellness centres by 2022, which would be equipped to treat diseases including blood pressure, diabetes, and cancer.  

Our Opinion

PMJAY is a nice scheme with minor flaws but with good intentions. The urgency to run pilot project and exaggerated advertisement can mean only one thing – Elections. We all know that 2019 Lok Sabha elections are approaching and the ruling party wants to alter its image. There are even reports of advertisements of PMJAY during movie intervals. Don’t you think there is too much advertisement of just a pilot project?