The all-India rollout of Ayushman scheme for the Central armed police forces (CAPF), which will allow their personnel and dependent family members to avail of cashless treatment at 24,000 empanelled hospitals across the country, is expected to be complete by March 31 this year, minister of state for home Nityanand Rai announced while distributing the last 10 Ayushman CAPF cards to each of the seven para-military forces here on Wednesday.
Addressing a function organised at a CRPF facility here to mark the end of distribution of Ayushman cards to around 35 lakh Central forces personnel, Rai said cards may be used by the personnel themselves or their dependents living far away, for both in-patient and out-patient care. He thanked the CAPF DGs present, for ensuring that 35 lakh cards were distributed in record time since the exercise got underway on November 2, 2021.
Wednesday’s Ayushman cards distribution ceremony was attended by the DGs of senior representatives of CRPF, BSF, ITBP, SSB, CISF, NSG and Assam Rifles, besides MHA officers.
The Ayushman CAPF scheme is a joint initiative of the ministry of home affairs, ministry of health and family welfare and National Health Authority (NHA).
The NHA will provide seamless services to the CAPF beneficiaries and has put in place a suitable mechanism with a special toll-free helpline number 14588 to file complaints and as a means for fraud detection and prevention.
Rai on Wednesday said that taking care of the health and welfare of “our jawans” – engaged in border security, internal security, counter-terrorism, counter-LWE or insurgency – has been a top priority of the Modi government and recognises the personnel’s immense contribution in countering terrorism, Left-wing extremism and insurgency and also aiding the state police in law and order and election duties.
Rai recalled that the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana / Ayushman Bharat Yojana was launched on September 23, 2018 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Thereafter, this scheme was inaugurated for all personnel of Central para-military forces and their families at Assam on January 23, 2021, by home minister Amit Shah.
The actual distribution of cards was started by Shah on November 2, 2021 and by December 31, 2021, almost all cards had been distributed to para-military personnel and their families.
Rai said that earlier, medical consultations and tests were available only in forces’ hospitals or other government hospitals or CGHS-empanelled hospitals. But now under the Ayushman CAPF scheme, medical facilities will be available on a cashless basis in about 24,000 empaneled hospitals of Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY with no limit on the expenditure.
“It will now become much easier for the kin of personnel of various forces who live in remote areas of the country to get treatment,” Rai said adding that the benefit will be a milestone “in the direction of a healthy and long life of the personnel of our armed police forces and their family members”.
Rai further assured that the Union government will provide for the betterment of all CAPF jawans, whether related to their health and that of their family members' or housing arrangements for them.
(With inputs from agencies)