Suvendu Adhikari,Chief Minister,West Bengal
Adhikari announced in a press conference that Bengal would now become part of the Ayushman Bharat scheme, alongside multiple other central welfare projects – like PM Jan Arogya Yojna, PM Fasal Bima Yojna offering crop insurance for farmers, PM Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) scheme for upgrading state-run schools, PM Viswakarma scheme supporting artisans and craftspeople, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme for women’s education and empowerment and Ujwala 3.0 scheme for subsidised cooking gas connections.
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari chaired the first cabinet meeting on Monday and said his government has decided to induct Bengal into multiple central government schemes, including the Ayushman Bharat health coverage programme.
The Ayushman Bharat aims to provide cashless hospitalisation coverage of Rs 5,00,000 per family per year to poor and vulnerable families for secondary and tertiary healthcare services.
Adhikari announced in a press conference that Bengal would now become part of the Ayushman Bharat scheme, alongside multiple other central welfare projects – like PM Jan Arogya Yojna(PMJAY), PM Fasal Bima Yojna(PMFBY) offering crop insurance for farmers, PM Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) scheme for upgrading state-run schools, PM Viswakarma scheme supporting artisans and craftspeople, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme for women’s education and empowerment and Ujwala 3.0 scheme for subsidised cooking gas connections.
West Bengal, currently primarily offers two main health insurance schemes: Swasthya Sathi for the general population and the West Bengal Health Scheme (WBHS) for state government employees.
Swasthya Sathi provides cashless, paperless, and cashless treatment up to ₹5 lakh per year for families, while WBHS offers medical benefits to government employees and pensioner. The scheme was announced in February, 2016 and was officially launched by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on 30th December 2016.
The main features of the scheme are: Basic health cover for secondary and tertiary care up to Rs. 5 lakh per annum per family,
Paperless, Cashless, Smart Card based, All pre-existing diseases are covered.
There is no cap on the family size and parents from both the spouse are included. All dependent physically challenged persons in the family are also covered.The entire cost is borne by the State Government and no contribution from the beneficiary.
Online Swathya Sathi Smart card is provided to each family on the day of enrolment. Smart Card captures the details of the family members,