Sri Vijaya Puram

Andaman and Nicobar Islands has been awarded the Best Union Territory in the 'Treatment of Beneficiaries' category under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, an official said.

The award was conferred in recognition of the effective implementation of the AB-PMJAY scheme.

Andaman and Nicobar Islands Chief Secretary Chandra Bhushan Kumar told PTI: “I would like to commend the entire team for the effective implementation of AB-PMJAY. Such recognition always encourages the team while doing public service."

There are 83,538 AB-PMJAY beneficiaries, 41,450 female, in the Union territory.

The authorities have reduced the financial burden on beneficiaries by providing transport costs and wage-loss compensation for patients referred to empanelled mainland hospitals under portability cases.

"To mitigate the hardships faced by beneficiaries undergoing treatment outside the islands, the UT administration, through the State Health Agency (SHA), has implemented a structured transport and wage loss compensation mechanism under the AB-PMJAY," said Dr P Lal, the nodal officer who received the award recently.

Beneficiaries were provided with transport assistance of up to Rs 40,000 per referral and wage-loss support at the rate of Rs 1,000 per day for a maximum period of 20 days, subject to prescribed guidelines, with the expenditure met from funds earmarked by the UT administration, he said.

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The transport and wage loss compensation scheme has been in operation since 2020. From its inception, a total of 1,659 claims have been received and settled, with an expenditure of Rs 2.78 crore, Lal said.

The AB-PMJAY is a flagship health insurance scheme of the central government, which provides cashless coverage of up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year.