Hyderabad: The Employees’ Health Scheme announced by the Telangana government in October 2014 to provide cashless medical treatment without any upper expenditure limit to employees and pensioners has failed to serve the purpose even after 19 months.
Employees still have to seek treatment costs from the government under the medical reimbursement scheme as the government is yet to enter into MoUs with corporate hospitals.
However, they are suffering huge losses as the bills are reimbursed as per the costs prescribed under the Central Government Health Scheme, while corporate hospitals charge nearly double the CGHS rates.
“Despite corporate hospitals openly flouting the norms by charging exorbitant amounts from employees and pensioners and not complying with CGHS norms, the state government has remained a mute spectator. We have brought this to the notice of the government several times but in vein. The government should either implement cashless medical treatment or make the corporate hospitals fall in line," said Mr A. Padma Chary, president, Telan-gana Udyogula Sangham.
The TRS government, which claims to be an “employee-friendly government” had announced the cashless treatment scheme as a "Dussehra gift" to employees in October 2014, claiming to be the first-of-its-kind in the country with no contribution to be made by employees.
During the launch, Chief Minister K. Chandra-sekhar Rao had said: “Employees need not pay anything from their pockets for the health scheme. The state government will bear the total medical expenses. Earlier, only 395 different ailments were covered but now all diseases will be covered under the new scheme.”
Employees found that the cards were of no use since hospitals weren’t honouring them. Corporate and private hospitals association are opposed to the treatment costs prescribed by the government and have refused to sign MoUs with the state government.
Over a dozen meetings have been held by health minister C. Laxma Reddy, officials of the Medical department and chief secretary Rajiv Sharma with hospitals over the last two years to persuade the latter to honour the cards, but nothing has come out of these meetings.
“Corporate hospitals have offered three packages, which are under examination by the government. We will approve one of them. The issue was taken to the CM, who will take a final decision,” Mr Reddy said.
