Healthcare card holders will no longer receive free treatment; instead,they will be required to pay 90% of the expenses out of pocket. Accordingto details provided by Riaz Anwar, Advisor to the Chief Minister forHealth, Welfare, and Labor, the Health Card program is not being terminatedbut is undergoing positive changes aimed at making it more accessible tothe 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 SecretaryMahmood Aslam, Chief Executive of the Health Card Riaz Tanoli, and Directorof the Health Card, Ijaz Khan, accompanied Advisor Riaz Anwar in explainingthat the Health Card project’s expenditures had escalated significantlythis year, reaching almost 42 billion rupees. This was straining thetreasury due to the current economic conditions, necessitating essentialchanges to make it more friendly to the poor.
They emphasized that the Health Department had been working continuouslyfor six months in line with special directives from Chief Minister MahmoodKhan to propose reforms so that the benefits of this facility continue toreach the province’s disadvantaged population. The Health Card’s servicesare part of the Ehsaas Income Support Program and provide free healthcareto categories 1, 2, and 3 individuals, while individuals in categories 4and 5 will be charged a percentage of the expenses. Emergency services willremain free for everyone.
Advisor Riaz Anwar stated that the aim of these reforms is to ensuretransparency and make the Health Card scheme sustainable, providinguninterrupted healthcare services to the underprivileged. Additionally, thereforms will focus on rationalizing the private sector hospitals tostrengthen the system of transparency.
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Furthermore, they have restricted seven services exclusively to publicsector hospitals, including C-section, tonsillectomy, gall bladder surgery,appendectomy, angiography, cataract surgery, and septoplasty.
Regarding annual expenditures, Health Secretary Mahmood Aslam stated thatas a result of these reforms, annual savings of approximately 11 billionrupees are expected. He emphasized that the Health Card Act has not beenrepealed 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 economicchallenges was a formidable task, but six months of continuous efforts havemade it more robust to provide free healthcare services to thedisadvantaged population through the Health Card scheme.
