New Delhi: Nearly 800 hospital admissions that incurred an expenditure of Rs 1.21 crore have been authorised under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana for transgender beneficiaries till February 5 this year, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Friday (February 9). The Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) is the largest publicly funded health insurance scheme in the world which provides health cover of Rs 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation to 12 crore poor families, Mr Mandaviya said in written response to a question in the Lok Sabha. He said,
As of February 5, a total of 794 hospital admissions amounting to Rs 1.21 crore have been authorised under PM-JAY for transgender beneficiaries.
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Additionally, an MoU has been signed between the National Health Authority and the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE) to extend the benefits of AB PM-JAY to all transgenders.
The MoU entails that transgenders are provided healthcare benefits under the SMILE (Support for Marginalized Individuals for Livelihood and Enterprise) framework launched by MoSJE.
Any member of the transgender community, registered on the national portal for transgender persons, is eligible for free health care facilities at any of the AB PM-JAY empanelled hospitals, Mr Mandaviya said.
On whether the government has any policies or schemes to address the mental health needs of transgenders, the minister said the government is implementing the National Mental Health Programme (NMHP) across the country supported through the National Health Mission at primary, secondary and tertiary levels.
Mental health services are part of the package of services under the Comprehensive Primary Health Care under Ayushman Bharat HWC Scheme.
The National Tele Mental Health Programme (NTMHP) has been launched to improve access to quality mental health counselling and care services in the country. Eligible individuals, including transgenders, are entitled to free health care services under the schemes, the minister stated.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which in its Season 10 is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Ayushmann Khurrana. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – the LGBTQ population, indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In a world post COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fight malnutrition, mental well-being, self-care, science and health, adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.
