Govt ensuring accessible healthcare to everyone: Lt Governor

Jammu, Nov 16: Jammu & Kashmir government Tuesday launched a public outreach campaign to raise awareness and highlight the flagship and other government schemes being implemented at the grassroots level to empower the common man.
Among that 10-point campaign, specific focus has been laid to step up the targeted delivery of healthcare schemes for the poor and to ensure 100% saturation of eligible beneficiaries in a mission mode.
The ‘One Person One Golden Card’ campaign targets the distribution of 58 Lakh Golden cards under the AB-PMJAY & AB-PMJAY-SEHAT health insurance schemes, among the beneficiaries by organizing special camps at the Panchayat level, within a span of two months. The aim is to cover the poor families from rural background and ensure greater coverage with easy access to affordable healthcare facilities during health emergencies.
Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha observed that J&K Government is making best possible efforts to ensure health care is accessible to everyone in the UT.
“I believe primary health care is people’s movement and their participation, mobilization to access the benefits is a key to make this campaign a huge success. Sehat is a unique health scheme which does not discriminate and brings out the spirit of social equality in health sector. Good health and well-being of people is the ultimate aim of the government,” the Lt Governor said.
Pertinently, J&K is one of the first UTs to implement the Universal Health Insurance Coverage. The Ayushman Bharat- PMJAY-SEHAT Scheme is one of the most ambitious schemes launched by the Government to provide free of cost Universal Health Insurance Coverage up to Rs. 5 lakh per family on a floater basis in convergence with Central Government’s Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY).
Overall, till ending October 2021, the UT has 76% of families with at least one Ayushman Golden Card. More than 16.2 Lakh and 38.4 Lakh Golden Cards have been issued to the beneficiaries under AB-PMJAY and AB-PMJAY-SEHAT respectively, in the UT of J&K.
Further, under AB-PMJAY & AB-PMJAY SEHAT, during the current policy period, 147582 cases have already been benefited amounting to Rs. 221.66 Crore, out of which Rs. 129.83 Crore have already been paid to the hospitals by the insurance company, thus ensuring free of cost specialized treatment to the poor.
Even though the State Health Agency J&K is presently organizing ‘Gaon Gaon Ayushman’, wherein Golden Card generation drive is closely monitored right from the Panchayat level, the ‘One Person One Golden Card’ campaign fixes a tangible target for covering the remaining 58 Lakh population in the scheme.
Similarly, the ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ Campaign launched today shall focus on coverage of all unvaccinated cases, besides ensuring sensitization regarding importance of Covid Appropriate Behaviour (CAB) and masks.
J&K has been a front runner among the States/UTs in vaccinating the eligible population with the Covid vaccine. As on date, the administration has vaccinated 95,52,204 individuals above 18 years achieving 100% coverage of first dose of the eligible citizens. Now, the ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ campaign will focus on achieving 100% coverage of the second dose of vaccine for all individuals who are 18 years & above in a time bound manner. Presently, 62,47,739 eligible beneficiaries have received the second dose of covid vaccine, marking a cumulative coverage of 67%.
The district administrations shall now reach out to each and every household and vaccinate the remaining individuals to ensure that the safety net of vaccines covers all individuals of 18 years & above. This will go a long way in moving towards the pre-covid scenario, lifting economic activity, speeding up developmental process in the region, besides instilling a sense of security among the general masses.