Bids for provision of health cards opened in media limelight

Islamabad: Marking an important step to expand the ambit of the Social Health Protection Initiative (Sehat Cards) to poor families across Pakistan, financial bids of insurance companies were opened on Saturday in the presence of the media for the provision of health cards to 14 million families.

Through these health cards, families living below the poverty line of $2 per day, will get financial protection against extraordinary healthcare expenditure.

The Sehat Card provides its enrolled poor beneficiary access to free indoor healthcare services worth Rs720,000 from public and private empanelled hospitals of their choice.

A wide range of both medical and surgical indoor services are included in this scheme including heart surgeries, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, dialysis, maternity and other medical and surgical services.

Speaking on the occasion, Health Minister Aamir Mehmood Kiani vowed to make efforts to provide best possible facilities to the poor segment as envisioned by Prime Minister Imran Khan.

The Ministry of Health has initiated its procurement process through which an insurance company was to be hired and contracted out for the implementation of the health cards scheme for the next three years. Technical bids of interested and shortlisted insurance companies were reviewed by a high powered-evaluation committee on December 6 and 7 and the submitted bids were opened in front of the media and procurement results announced.

The evaluation committee had representation from all provinces including Balochistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh, and had members from the Ministry of Finance, Planning, Law & Justice and BISP.

The Ministry of Health aims to complete the contracting process with the selected insurance company during December 2018. Upon completion of the programme implementation, 14 million families (approximately 80 million individuals) will be enrolled to benefit from the scheme in all districts.