In order to bring more people, who are living under below poverty line (BPL), under Universal Health Insurance Scheme (UHIS) the Centre has decided to reduce the annual premium, said P Chidambaram, Union Finance Minister.
Speaking at the launch of Apollo Reach Hospitals which was inaugurated by the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today at Chennai, the minister said that the annual insurance premium for UHIS has been reduced to Rs 300 from Rs 365 for an individual and for a five member family it has been reduced to Rs 450 from Rs 548 and for a seven-member family premium reduced to Rs 600 from Rs 730.
The minister added it has also been decided to increase the age limit to 70 years from the current 65 years.
The premium will include pre-existing diseases, which was not made available till now.
The policy will also be extended to maternity cases.
After launching Apollo Reach Hospitals the Prime Minister said the challenge of providing health care in a country like India is complex.
Good health outcomes are not simply a matter of availability of health care providers.
They depend on a number of concomitant factors like water supply and sanitation, education, and infant nutrition.
The challenge of providing affordable quality health care to people cannot be left only to the state.
The private sector has always played a dominant role in the provision of health care services in the country.
The nature of private health care provisioning in India is extremely diverse.
It ranges from the village level provider of alternative systems of medicine to high quality specialty hospitals.
"This entire range of societal capacity created in the health sector is something that we need to build on".
Commenting on the Apollo Reach Hospital concept he said that this innovative model, which has tele-medicine at its core and integrates technology with the provision of health care, would be an ideal example of how an effective outreach programme can be planned and implemented
The Prime Minister inaugurated the first Apollo Reach at Karim Nagar, Andhra Pradesh, through a tele-link, while the Tamil Nadu chief minister, M Karunanidhi inaugurated the Karaidkudi centres in Tamil Nadu.
Speaking at the event Dr Pratap C Reddy, executive chairman, Apollo Hospitals Group, said in the next two years 35 Apollo Reach Hospitals with be set up with 100 to 150 beds across semi-urban and rural parts of the country with an investment of around Rs 1,000 crore.
The group is also planning to set up a health knowledge city in Chitoor, Andhra Pradesh, as a health resource skill development initiative.
Setting up medical colleges is also on the group's roadmap.
