The Delhi Government on Tuesday said it will provide free MRI scan in private labs to bonafide residents of the Capital whose annual income is less than Rs 3 lakh.
“This will cover over 95 per cent of the population of Delhi... The scheme has already started from December 1,” Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain told the media.
Jain said as per Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s instructions, money saved from timely construction of flyovers would be used to fund the scheme. “In Government hospitals, it often takes years to get an MRI scan done. There have been complaints that patients had been told to wait till 2019 for an MRI or CT scan.”Jain said, as an immideate measure the Government has decided to rope in private labs, particularly the GB Pant Hospital.
“We are also working on public private partnership model to get more MRI machines at Government hospitals. But that may take a few years,” the Minister said.
According to the Delhi Government, over Rs 350 crore have been saved by building flyovers in Delhi at much below the sanctioned budget.
Jain said the Government had identified seven private MRI scan centres accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers (NABH).
“We have authorised 10 Delhi Government hospitals — GB Pant Hospital, lok Nayak Hospital, GTB Hospital, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, Dr Baba Saheb Aambedkar Hospital, Rajiv Gandhi Super Specialty Hospital, Janakpuri Super Specialty Hospital, Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences, Delhi State Cancer Institute and Chacha Nehru Bal Chikitsalaya — which can refer patients to these labs and they will then provide cashless MRI and CT scans to patients.” The Delhi Government will directly pay the labs.
“This facility shall substantially decrease the load of MRI/CT scan on Delhi Government hospitals and shorten the waiting list for patients undergoing treatment there,” a Government statement said.
An MRI scan from NABH accredited centre costs anything between Rs 2,500 and Rs 5,600.