The state government has announced that free treatment up to five lakh rupees under the State Ayushman and Atal Ayushman schemes will now be provided through an insurance model. This will reduce the financial burden of treatment costs on the state government. In addition, the contribution for cashless treatment under the state government’s health scheme for employees and pensioners, which is provided through Golden Cards, has been increased after five years. Further increases in contributions will be based on the dearness allowance in the future.
The Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana was launched on September 23, 2018. This scheme, run by the central government, covered 5.97 lakh families in the state. However, the state government launched the State Ayushman Yojana to provide free treatment up to five lakh rupees to all 23 lakh-plus ration card holders in Uttarakhand. Under the Ayushman scheme, the Golden Card scheme was also launched to provide cashless treatment with unlimited coverage for employees and pensioners.
In the Golden Card scheme, the government does not provide a budget for cashless treatment. The State Health Authority was facing difficulties because the expenditure on treatment was higher than the revenue generated from the contributions of employees and pensioners. Now, the government has increased the contribution for the Golden Card from 200 to 450 rupees. Pay Level Category Current Contribution New Contribution
1 to 5 250 425
Level 6 450 800
7 to 11 650 1000
Level 12 and above 1000 1450
61 Lakh Ayushman and Golden Card Holders
More than 61 lakh Ayushman and Golden Cards have been issued under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, Atal Ayushman Yojana, and the Uttarakhand State Government Health Scheme. More than 17 lakh patients have availed of free treatment facilities by getting admitted to hospitals. A total of ₹3300 crore has been spent on this free treatment so far. 396 hospitals are empanelled under the scheme, including 201 government and 195 private hospitals. More than 31,000 hospitals in other states are also empanelled under the Ayushman Yojana
