Card to give free healthcare to Delhiites in the pipeline

NEW DELHI: After winning global praise for its highly successful Mohalla clinics programme, the Delhi government is mulling issuing health cards to all residents of Delhi soon.

The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) has invited expression of interest (EOI) from companies and agencies to design and develop the software for Aadhaar-based verification and issuance of the health card.

The deadline for submitting the EOI is February 28.

The DGHS is fast-tracking the work for this ambitious health cards project, which will cover 1.8 crore residents.

"The scheme is to issue health cards to all residents. The holder of the card will be entitled to free healthcare services in institutions either owned by the state government or run by the government under autonomous mode, polyclinics, dispensaries, primary urban health centres and Mohalla clinics," a top official at the Directorate said.

A voter identity card of Delhi is mandatory for availing the Aam Aadmi Health Card, which will be issued by Department of Health and Family Welfare, for individuals aged above 18 years.

Similarly, the Aadhaar card number is required for anyone above the age of one. The cardholders will also get priority for registration for various healthcare services, the official added.

However, a section of officials, healthcare activists and advocacy groups have expressed their apprehensions over the proposed scheme.

"Making health card mandatory will have serious implications in a city like Delhim where a large part of the population is migrant workers. Another concern is denial of care to those who don't possess cards. Since healthcare is free already, the relevance of this whole exercise is questionable," said an official of the Delhi Health department.

The move is the latest in a slew of initiatives proposed and implemented by the state government.

The Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government had, in 2015, launched the Mohalla or community clinics project, which received plaudits by global leaders, including former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and former director general of World Health Organisation Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland.

The state government's flagship healthcare project, 'Quality Healthcare for All', provides high-end diagnostic tests and surgeries for free at private centres and hospitals.

Official figures show that more than 12,000 people benefited from it between March and December 2017.

Another proposal in the pipeline is the setting up of a Hospital Management Information System to integrate all the government hospitals and Mohalla clinics.

The idea was floated by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal at a healthcare sector review meeting recently.

A dedicated call centre would be set up to facilitate patients and guide them to nearest hospitals and out-patient departments, pharmacies and labs would be refurbished as part of the proposed programme.