Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has announced a new Universal Health Coverage (UHC) scheme aimed at providing comprehensive health insurance to all residents of the state. This initiative, a key promise of the NDA government, seeks to ensure that every family has access to quality medical care without facing financial hardship.

Key Features of the Scheme

The UHC scheme offers several important benefits:

• Extensive Coverage: Every family in Andhra Pradesh is now covered under a universal health insurance scheme worth ₹2.5 lakh per year. For the poor, additional coverage of up to ₹25 lakh is provided through the NTR Vaidya Seva Trust.
• Cashless Treatment: The scheme facilitates cashless treatment at network hospitals across the state. This eliminates the need for upfront payments, making healthcare more accessible.
• Wide Range of Procedures: The initiative covers 3,257 medical procedures, previously included under the Dr. NTR Vaidya Seva scheme. The government has also expanded the number of services covered in government hospitals from 169 to 324.
• Inclusion of All Families: The Universal Health Policy aims to extend medical insurance coverage up to ₹25 lakh to all families, irrespective of their economic status. This is expected to benefit 1.63 crore families across the state.
• Streamlined Processes: The government has implemented a streamlined pre-authorization management system, ensuring treatment approvals within six hours. Faster claims processing and fraud detection measures have also been introduced to ensure transparency.
• Hybrid Insurance Model: The scheme operates on a hybrid model, involving private insurance companies to manage claims and service delivery. Claims up to ₹2.5 lakh will be handled by insurance companies, while expenses above that and up to ₹25 lakh will be borne by the NTR Vaidya Seva Trust.

Project Sanjeevani

In addition to the UHC scheme, Chief Minister Naidu announced the ‘Sanjeevani’ project, an initiative developed in partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and TCS. This project aims to integrate Ayushman Bharat, NTR health services, and global medical knowledge to deliver healthcare to citizens' doorsteps. As part of this, health records for nearly five crore people will be digitized to ensure better access and treatment.

Additional Initiatives

The Andhra Pradesh government is also undertaking several other initiatives to improve the healthcare system:

• Medical Infrastructure: The government plans to establish specialty hospitals in each Assembly constituency across the state. Additionally, 10 new medical colleges will be established under a public-private partnership (PPP) model in various locations.
• Health Camps: Over 13,944 health camps will be conducted across the state, offering free tests for various conditions and providing services by specialists.
• Focus on Women's Health: The government is emphasizing women's health through initiatives like the Swasth Nari – Sashakt Parivar Abhiyan, which includes comprehensive screenings for women's health issues.
• Digital Healthcare: The state government is exploring WhatsApp Governance for healthcare services and adopting AI and machine learning for data collection and service delivery.

Impact and Vision

The UHC scheme is expected to significantly strengthen the public healthcare system in Andhra Pradesh. By providing access to free and cashless medical treatment, the state aims to increase hospital admissions, encourage preventive healthcare practices, improve hospital infrastructure, and increase public confidence in the state-sponsored healthcare system.

Chief Minister Naidu has emphasized the importance of making quality healthcare accessible to all, especially the economically weaker sections. The vision is to create a "Healthy, Wealthy, Happy Andhra Pradesh," where every family has access to the medical care they need to lead healthy and productive lives.