Health scheme launched
Mumbai, Jul 2 (PTI) Rolling out the first phase of the Rajiv Gandhi Jeevandayee Arogya Yojana (RGJAY) in the state, the Maharashtra Chief Secretary Jayant Kumar Banthia today said that the poor also can now have access to certain leading speciality hospitals under the scheme.
He said that the government has roped in even the super-speciality hospital Seven Hills at Bandra which would offer treatment to the poor under the scheme.
“Three hundred beds will be allotted for the people belonging to the poor sections of the society at the Seven Hills hospital. The hospital has made commitment with the government to allow access to the poor to avail benefits of the RGJAY,” Chief Secretary J K Banthia said at the launch of the scheme today.
In the first phase, eight districts would be covered under the scheme including Mumbai, its suburbs, Gadchiroli, Amravati, Nanded, Solapur, Dhule and Raigad. People having an annual income of less than Rs 1 lakh per annum, would be given medical treatment up to a cost of Rs 1.5 lakh for free.
“People from the deprived sections of the society having life threatening disease will be given cashless treatment,” Banthia said.
He said that the state would be spending an estimated Rs 800 crore on the scheme to be implemented in a phased manner over three years and aims at benefiting about 2.5 crore families having an annual income of less than Rs 1 lakh and those belonging to the BPL families. It will include 972 surgeries, therapies and procedures under 30 specialities with 121 follow-up packages.
The beneficiary families are being identified through district administrations based on their ration cards, Antyodaya Anna Yojana card (AAY), Annapurna card and orange ration card. Banthia said it will be implemented phase-wise given its complex nature. “It will be implemented in remaining parts of the state after the Cabinet decision,” he added.