The UPA Government on Monday formally launched the health insurance scheme for Below Poverty Line (BPL) families working in the unorganised sector.The scheme will provide health insurance cover of Rs 30,000 per annum per BPL family (of five members) working in the unorganised sector. To avail of the health insurance cover, each family will have to pay an annual fee of Rs 30 towards registration and renewal. The Central and state governments in 75:25 ratio will pay the annual premium for each beneficiary under the scheme.Finance Minister P Chidambaram said the scheme — Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana — is one of the components of the “three-pronged” social security arrangement that has been planned by the UPA Government under the Unorganised Workers Security Bill. He added that the National Old Age Pension Scheme (NOAPS) for BPL families and Aam Admi Bima Yojana (AABY) constitute the other two schemes under the bill that has already been introduced in Parliament.Speaking at the launch, Union Labour Minister Oscar Fernandes said the scheme fulfils the commitment made by the UPA Government in its National Common Minimum Programme and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s promise in his Independence Day address. The scheme, which will be implemented by the state governments, would provide smart cards to each beneficiary family to make the insurance a cashless transaction. The scheme would cover all pre-existing diseases and hospitalisation expenses, taking care of most of the illnesses. The beneficiary would also receive transportation cost of Rs 100 per visit with an overall limit of Rs 1,000 per annum. The scheme is likely to cover all BPL families in the span of five years in a phased manner — 120 districts each year.
