Pralhad Joshi, MP, Dharwad, said that already 1.4 lakh health cards under the Union government-sponsored Ayushman Bharat scheme were issued and appealed to the people to make use of the scheme.
Inaugurating the mega health camp organised by the district administration and Health Department at Hurakadli Law College here on Sunday, Mr. Joshi said that under the scheme, patients from poor and middle class sections of society would get health insurance coverage of upto ₹5 lakh per year per family for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation.
He said that because of several factors treatment costs had increased manifold and with new lifestyle diseases on the rise, the cost of medical treatment had also increased day by day. He said the Centre’s health scheme was aimed at helping the people meet hospital expenses.
Mr. Joshi also appealed to doctors in the government and private sector to hold regular check-up camps so that the poor and middle class could take part. This would prevent them from going to hospitals at the last stage of the disease, he said.
On the grants from the Centre for improving healthcare facilities, he said that ₹30 crore had been sanctioned for the upgrade of ESI Hospital in Hubballi and ₹137 crore had been sanctioned for setting up a super-speciality hospital on the KIMS Hospital premises in Hubballi.
V.D. Karpurmath, president, Indian Red Cross Society, said because of changed lifestyles and less physical work, diabetes, cancer, and high blood pressure were on the rise now. He advised people to not neglect their health and get regular checks done. He also appealed to them to make use of schemes like Ayushman Bharat, Arogya Karnataka and others.
Dharwad Rural MLA Amrut Desai, district surgeon Giridhar Kukanoor, District Health and Family Welfare Officer R.M. Doddmani and others were present. Hundreds of patients were screened and given medical advice and free medicines.
