Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has asked the officials of Health, Medical and Family Welfare Department to ensure that the Aarogyasri scheme is applicable to all cases where the expenditure exceeds ₹1,000 in Kadapa, Kurnool, Prakasam, Guntur, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts, beginning July 14 (Tuesday).
During a review meeting with YSR Aarogyasri Trust CEO A. Mallikarjuna and other officials on Wednesday, Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy said that he had promised in the run-up to 2019 elections that cases where patients had incurred expenditure more than ₹1,000 would be brought under the purview of the Aarogyasri scheme.
“As many as 2,146 types of diseases have been brought under the ambit of the Aarogyasri scheme. No effort should be spared in implementing it in letter and spirit. Even type of cancer has been included in the list of diseases covered under the scheme. Only 1,059 types of diseases were covered during the TDP regime,” said the Chief Minister.
‘Pay salaries to contract workers on time’
Meanwhile, the Chief Minister instructed the officials to pay salaries to the workers hired by various government departments on contract basis on time through the ‘green channel’.
He said that all contract workers engaged in departments, societies and universities must get their salaries like other government employees and the amounts need to be directly credited into their bank accounts.
He pointed out that the previous government had announced a minimum time-scale salary to about 54,000 contract employees just before the Assembly elections, but had done nothing for them.
“It was only from July 2019 that the minimum time-scale salary to contract employees was being implemented. There was a hike of 88% to 95 % in the salaries when compared to that of March 31, 2017,” said the Chief Minister.
Social security benefits
Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy also directed the officials to prepare a report prepare a report on the social security benefits to contract workers and submit it to the government at the earliest.
