Importance & Objectives of Government Health Insurance

Health insurance is the need of the hour for every person in the country. If there’s anything that the COVID era has taught us, it is to keep ourselves insured and protected at all times. Health insurance plans are the best way to safeguard our future against any emergency or unforeseeable expenses when it comes to our health. However, there is yet another harsh reality.

Not every person in our country can unfortunately afford the cost of buying health insurance plans even for themselves, let alone their family. This is why the government of India has taken a step forward in the direction of making health insurance plans affordable and accessible to all. Government Health Insurance helps ensure that every person in the country insures his/her health against life’s uncertainties.

What is Government Health Insurance Policy?

Government health insurance plans are backed or sponsored by the state and central governments with the prime objective to ensure that healthcare is available in every nook and corner of the country. Most parts of India, particularly the rural areas, still do not have easy access to all medical care facilities in the country.

This is where government health insurance schemes in India play an important role. The state government of every state is primarily responsible for ensuring good health and well-being of all its residents. It is for this reason that the government has joined hands with the private sector in launching and backing various government health insurance plans in the country.

Objectives of Government Health Insurance 

The very basic reason why government health insurance came into existence is to ensure that each and every person in the country, particularly those residing in the remotest parts of India, are not deprived of basic health insurance services. After all, anybody can fall prey to dangerous diseases, illnesses or health conditions. This is why it’s important that each and every person in the country has access to good-quality healthcare.

And since quality medical care comes at a cost (which may often not be affordable by the poor man), government health insurance plans come to the rescue. Backed and sponsored by government fund support, these schemes offer affordable health insurance to one and all.

Importance of Government Health Insurance

There are some very helpful advantages of government health insurance plans for the common man. Some of these are listed below:

• With government-backed health insurance schemes, healthcare has become accessible to the underprivileged and downtrodden sections of the society. This means that now any person living in any remote part of the country can hope to receive quality treatment for illnesses without worrying about being able to afford it or not.
• The availability of these plans at nominal charges to the poor also makes them easily accessible to all.
• Lower price does not mean low-quality treatment though. Government health insurance ensures that quality healthcare services are offered both at government and private hospitals.

Top 3 Government Health Insurance Schemes in India

Now that we learned how government-backed health insurance plans are nothing but a boon to our society, let us look at some of the most popular government health insurance schemes that currently operate in India:

1. Aam Aadmi Bima Yojana (AABY): As the name suggests, this insurance scheme is run for the Aam Aadmi (common man). The scheme is particularly meant for the benefit of rural people and hence, the premium payable under the plan is shared in a 50:50 ratio between the central and state government for each member enrolled in the scheme. As for the benefits of the plan, the government of India collaborates with Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India to offer insurance coverage to the rural sector in addition to an add-on scholarship for children of the members of the scheme.
2. Ayushman Bharat Yojana: Now renamed as Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, this scheme is run by the Prime Minister of India to help the economically weaker sections receive appropriate and quality healthcare services. The highlight of the plan is the cashless benefit offered to the underprivileged people at a network hospital under the scheme. Approximately Rs. 5 lakh insurance cover is provided to each family every year under the plan, ensuring that the poor do not stay deprived of basic quality medical care.
3. Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme: This plan was particularly launched in the state of Tamil Nadu by the then Chief Minister Late Smt. Jayalalitha. Hence, it is also popularly known by the name Amma Health Insurance (after the late CM who was fondly addressed as ‘Amma’ by the state’s people). The scheme covers families with very low annual income, ensuring that they do not have to suffer hardships during a medical emergency.

The plan provides insurance coverage for all medical care services required during an emergency, such as cost of diagnostic tests, hospital stay, follow-up consultations, and the like.