Hospitals allege delay in payment by the health department; minister promises things will be set right soon.
For lakhs of financially weak patients suffering from critical ailments, the Jeevandai Arogya Yojana is supposed to be a crucial life support system. However, it seems to be hurtling towards a problem due to delay at the government’s end in clearing dues to several hospitals which treat poor patients.
The health department is yet to clear huge pending dues of many hospitals, making the latter reluctant to take up treatment.
The scheme, launched in October 1997, promises super specialty services for patients with serious diseases of the heart, kidney, brain and the spinal chord, and cancer. Under it, the government takes care of the hospital charges and pays up to Rs1,50,000 in individual cases.
The only proof the patient has to submit is the yellow ration card, the BPL (below poverty line) certificate from the local tahsildar and an advance estimate of expenses from the recognised government and private hospital concerned. Since a large number of private hospitals are covered under the scheme, patients have a good range of options choose from.
Now, it has come to light that a hospital at Shirdi run by Shree Sai Sansthan is yet to receive an amount of Rs18.90 crore from the health department. The dues from previous years are
pending too.
“Since the sansthan has its own money, we manage to pay for equipment used in surgery. But sometimes things get difficult for us too,’’ said Jayant Sasane, chairman, Shree Sai Sansthan. He, however, added that the health minister has assured that the dues would be paid soon.
One of the senior officials from another private hospital said pending dues were a routine irritant. “The scheme is really good since poor patients get benefited, but we are not getting our money back on time. Sometimes we have to wait for six months. The company supplying the equipment for surgery, does not wait that long,” he said.
Some private hospitals do not want to raise their voices over dues fearing trouble from the government.
“This happened with us also. A whopping Rs3-4 crore was pending with the government for some time. But it has cleared everything now,’’ said senior doctors from the JJ hospital.
The patients, obviously, have to take the brunt. “Private hospitals do not co-operate with us properly and give us surgery appointments after long time because of the pending dues. In that case, we have to go to the government hospitals,” said a patient.
Health minister Suresh Shetty admits to the problems. “I agree there are some issues in this scheme but very soon we will come up with the new scheme called Rajiv Gandhi Jeevandayi Yojana, which will take care of such problems.’’
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