Budget for Health Insurance Scheme cut to Rs9 billion

ISLAMABAD: While the PML-N government has managed to complete Rs44-billion Metro Bus Project in Islamabad, it is still unable to even start work on its much touted landmark National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) for 100 million poor patients despite reducing its budget to Rs9.2 billion, The News has learnt.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had approved the scheme in June 2014 and it was expected to be launched on March 23rd but “budget constraints” have hampered the progress on the project that was seen as a ray of hope for underprivileged people who are unable to afford expensive medical care at the private hospitals.
The scheme was supposed to provide a blanket for cash-free treatment to the underprivileged for major diseases like cardiovascular diseases, Diabetes Mellitus, Burna and RTA (Life and limb saving treatment, implants, prosthesis), end stage renal diseases and dialysis, chronic infections (Hepatitis), organ failure (Hepatic, Renal, Cardiopulmonary) and cancer treatment (Chemo, Radio, Surgery).
Sources said that the initial PC-1 for the project was rejected by the Central Development Working Party (CDWP) last month as its budget estimates of Rs43 billion were considered too high. Sources added that CDWP also asked the Ministry of National Health Services Regulations and Coordination to seek the consent of all the provinces as they had to bear cost for major parts of the scheme.
Sources said a revised PC-1 has been prepared for the scheme by reducing cost of the project to Rs9.2 billion for the initial phase of three years.Sources also added that the Ministry had written letters to all four provinces to seek their consent but government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has expressed reservation over the schemes while three other provinces have hinted at supporting the scheme with minor changes.
According to revised PC-1, 23 districts will be included in the scheme from Punjab, Sindh, KP, Balochistan, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir.Around 1287608 families from Punjab’s districts of Narowal, Khaniwal, Sarghoda and Rahim Yar Khan will benefit from the scheme. The families have already been identified through a survey conducted by National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) and Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP).
In Sindh 978044 families from Shikarpur, Badin, Benazirabad, and Sanghar will be included in the scheme. Four districts of KP, Sawabi, Noshehra, DI Khan and Haripur will be part of the scheme and a total of 816819 families will benefit.
In Balochistan, the scheme will be implemented in districts of Quetta, Lora Lai, Lasbila, Kech with 244810 families. The scheme will also be implemented in Muzaffarabad and Kotli districts of AJK and 100324 families of Islamabad will also be part of the scheme in first phase.
When contacted Director General Health Asad Hafeez said that a steady progress was being made on the NHIS. “We are currently in the planning phase as it is being discussed in CDWP. We will soon start the implementation stage after the consultation process is completed with the provinces,” he said.
While announcing the scheme last year, the prime minister had said: “Health insurance programme is the only way forward to provide healthcare protection to economically deprived people of the society. The scheme is the first of its kind to introduce a grievance redressing system as well as social security safety net for the poor people of Pakistan. The programme will not only give the vulnerable sections of the society an access to cash-free health facilities but will also help to develop and revolutionise the health infrastructure across Pakistan.”