The State Government is still awaiting the Union Government’s response to its conditions for implementation of the Centre’s Ayushman Bharat scheme.
According to Health and Family Welfare Minister Naba Kishore Das, the State Government has sought two changes in the provisions of the Ayushman Bharat scheme before implementing it.
Das said the State Government has proposed the Centre not to make Aadhaar card mandatory for the patients to undergo treatment at Government hospitals. However, the Aadhaar card can be made mandatory for private hospitals, he said.
He pointed out that the State has already implemented its own Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY) much before the Centre launched its healthcare scheme. Under the BSKY, there is no provision of mandatory Aadhaar card for getting treatment.
Secondly, Das said the Centre has decided to cover 62 lakh beneficiaries under Ayushman Bharat for treatment at private hospitals, but the State Government has asked to raise it to 70 lakh.
The State Government has already appraised the Centre of its two conditions in a letter in September and then in December last year and is still waiting for its reply.
On the other hand, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has reportedly said, “There is no point in making unnecessary controversy over Ayushman Bharat. The State Government should implement it for the betterment of the needy people of Odisha.”