Devastating news for health card beneficiaries
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Healthcare card holders will no longer receive free treatment; instead, they will be required to pay 90% of the expenses out of pocket. According to details provided by Riaz Anwar, Advisor to the Chief Minister for Health, Welfare, and Labor, the Health Card program is not being terminated but is undergoing positive changes aimed at making it more accessible to the needy. Detailed recommendations have been prepared in this regard, which were approved by the cabinet recently.
During a press conference at the Peshawar Secretariat, Health Secretary Mahmood Aslam, Chief Executive of the Health Card Riaz Tanoli, and Director of the Health Card, Ijaz Khan, accompanied Advisor Riaz Anwar in explaining that the Health Card project's expenditures had escalated significantly this year, reaching almost 42 billion rupees. This was straining the treasury due to the current economic conditions, necessitating essential changes to make it more friendly to the poor.
They emphasized that the Health Department had been working continuously for six months in line with special directives from Chief Minister Mahmood Khan to propose reforms so that the benefits of this facility continue to reach the province's disadvantaged population. The Health Card's services are part of the Ehsaas Income Support Program and provide free healthcare to categories 1, 2, and 3 individuals, while individuals in categories 4 and 5 will be charged a percentage of the expenses. Emergency services will remain free for everyone.
Advisor Riaz Anwar stated that the aim of these reforms is to ensure transparency and make the Health Card scheme sustainable, providing uninterrupted healthcare services to the underprivileged. Additionally, the reforms will focus on rationalizing the private sector hospitals to strengthen the system of transparency.
Furthermore, they have restricted seven services exclusively to public sector hospitals, including C-section, tonsillectomy, gall bladder surgery, appendectomy, angiography, cataract surgery, and septoplasty.
Regarding annual expenditures, Health Secretary Mahmood Aslam stated that as a result of these reforms, annual savings of approximately 11 billion rupees are expected. He emphasized that the Health Card Act has not been repealed but has been amended to make the Health Card project more durable. Riaz Khan Tanoli, Chief Executive Officer of the Health Card project, shared that maintaining the Health Card project amid current economic challenges was a formidable task, but six months of continuous efforts have made it more robust to provide free healthcare services to the disadvantaged population through the Health Card scheme.
