The Rajiv Gandhi Jeevandayi Arogya Yojna (RGJAY), launched by the government of Maharashtra on July 2, 2012 completed one year on Tuesday. The Jeevandayi scheme provides health insurance cover till up to `1.5 lakh for families earning less than `1 lakh per year.
The programme was launched in eight districts of the state as a pilot project. Within one year of its existence, the programme has covered 77, 472 surgeries that have cost the state exchequer `197.14 crore.
With very limited number of hospitals coming on board, it is primarily the government and corporation-run hospitals in the eight districts that have played a key role in sustaining the programme.
“About 68 per cent patients have been treated in state and civic-run hospitals, 32 per cent of patients have been treated in private hospitals across eight districts of Maharashtra, including Mumbai,” said K. Venkatesam, chief executive officer, RGJAY.
In Mumbai and suburbs, there are 53 hospitals empanelled in the programme, and 31,706 surgeries amounting to `101 crore were conducted.
At the completion of one year of the programme, health minister Suresh Shetty informed that in the coming two months, the rest of the state would be covered under the programme. “The scheme will be rolled out to the entire state within the next two-and-a-half months. Even if the so-called charitable hospitals in the city have not come forward to get empanelled in the scheme, we have managed to steer the pilot phase well,” said Mr Shetty.
The minister also observed that the leading private hospitals had shied away from coming on board, citing the reason that the rates fixed for treatments would compromise their profitability. “We fixed the rates of the procedures after a thorough discussion, but now it is a question of profitability for private hospitals,” said Mr Shetty.