IMA urges public to get vaccinated
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They noted that despite vaccines being available in the state to prevent many communicable diseases, people are not taking them and ultimately fall victim to the infection.
"Vaccines are available to prevent influenza, hepatitis A and other infections. In many diseases, death occurs when a patient's lung is infected with pneumonia. To prevent it, one can take pneumococcal vaccine. Many believe that vaccines against various diseases are only for children and not meant for adults.
It is a misconception. Adults should also get immunised to prevent various diseases as their immunity decreases with age and when lifestyle diseases take a toll on their immunity," said IMA Kochi president Dr Jacob Abraham.
"More people are developing lifestyle diseases like diabetes and heart ailments in the state, necessitating vaccination to ensure health conditions of patients with comorbidities do not worsen when they are infected with communicable diseases," said IMA Kochi research cell chairman Dr Rajeev Jayadevan.
Currently, vaccines against hepatitis A, influenza, chickenpox and some other communicable diseases available in the state are not part of universal immunisation programme. Hence people have to pay out of their own pockets to get vaccinated.
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Hindustan Times
10 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Ayushman Bharat services suspended by 650 private hospitals in Haryana over pending dues
The Haryana chapter of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Thursday announced the suspension of Ayushman Bharat scheme services in the state over the issue of pending dues of empanelled hospitals despite an assurance from the state government to release the payments at the earliest. IMA's Haryana secretary Dhirender K Soni said on Thursday that the state government has failed to clear the reimbursement of private hospitals. In Haryana, the IMA represents nearly 650 private hospitals empanelled under the Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), a flagship scheme of the Modi government that provides a health cover of ₹5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care. The body had earlier warned that the private hospitals would stop treatment under the scheme from August 7 if pending dues were not cleared. After talks with IMA representatives on Wednesday, Haryana additional chief secretary (Health) Sudhir Rajpal had appealed to them to reconsider their decision. IMA's Haryana secretary Dhirender K Soni said on Thursday that the state government has failed to clear the reimbursement of private hospitals. 'The government itself admits that ₹490 crore in dues are pending. By the time they will disperse this amount, the pendency will keep on increasing,' Soni said. 'What will private hospitals do? How can they sustain if they do not get reimbursements on time?' he said. Soni said that talks were held on Wednesday with senior state government officials, but it did not yield the desired outcome. The issue of pending dues and prolonged delay in payments to private hospitals for the past several months was brought to their notice, he said. After the meeting, the Haryana chapter of IMA held a virtual meeting with the private empanelled hospitals under the Ayushman scheme and later it was decided to suspend the services from midnight (beginning August 7), he said. Earlier on Tuesday, the Haryana government had said that the claims of empanelled hospitals under the Ayushman Bharat scheme are being settled. On Wednesday, Rajpal, held a detailed meeting with representatives of the IMA, Haryana, to address their concerns regarding delayed payments under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. An official statement said that Rajpal assured them that the state government is actively releasing payments to the empanelled hospitals and remains fully committed to resolving all outstanding issues. During the meeting, Rajpal gave a patient hearing to the delegation and acknowledged the challenges faced by the medical fraternity. He reiterated the government's commitment to clearing all pending dues under the Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana at the earliest. Rajpal had on Wednesday appealed to the IMA representatives and urged them to reconsider their decision on suspending the service, emphasising that such action could disrupt essential healthcare services, particularly for economically weaker sections of society. 'We understand your concerns, and we are working to address them. However, a strike would adversely affect thousands of poor patients who depend on the scheme for timely and affordable treatment,' Rajpal had said. The government maintains that the state health agency (SHA), Haryana, has already processed and paid claims submitted by empanelled hospitals up to the first week of May 2025. During the financial year 2025-26, up to July 16, ₹240.63 crore has been received from the state and central governments and fully utilised for the settlement of eligible claims.
Time of India
13 hours ago
- Time of India
Pvt hospitals in state stop Ayushman Bharat services
Gurgaon: Private hospitals in Haryana pulled out of Ayushman Bharat scheme on Thursday, halting treatments and admissions under the Centre's flagship health insurance programme, weeks after they had warned the state to pay nearly Rs 500 crore that was pending as reimbursements. The indefinite suspension affects 1.8 crore people from low-income families who are covered under the scheme in the state. In the last three days, Rs 30 crore was released in reimbursements, but hospitals said it was too little, too late. You Can Also Check: Gurgaon AQI | Weather in Gurgaon | Bank Holidays in Gurgaon | Public Holidays in Gurgaon "Rs 30 crore released over the last few days is insufficient. Hospitals cannot continue offering treatment under the scheme without timely reimbursements," said Dr Mahavir Jain, president of Indian Medical Association (Haryana). Several hospitals in Gurgaon, Hisar, Karnal and Faridabad confirmed that they have stopped accepting Ayushman cards as of Thursday morning. "We cannot continue unless dues are cleared. We have been running on credit for months," said a senior administrator at a private hospital in the city. Patients are a worried lot, especially because a bulk of critical healthcare services are available at private facilities. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like They Are Unstoppable: The Most Beautiful and Talented Female Athletes Undo "I have three dialysis sessions a week. If the hospital stops taking Ayushman card, where am I supposed to go? I can't afford even one session without the card," said Ramesh Kumar, a 58-year-old who suffers from chronic kidney disease and usually visits a hospital in Sector 28. A daily wage earner (55) said he needs to get hip surgery done, but a hospital in the city told him to "come back when services resume". "We don't have money to pay on our own," he said. The decision comes weeks after IMA-Haryana in July warned the govt that 650 private hospitals will stop providing medical treatments under the scheme as most of the facilities had received just 10-15% of their billed amount since March. The association had issued a similar warning in Jan earlier this year and said Haryana's implementation of Ayushman Bharat was in a state of "chronic breakdown". At the time, govt cleared reimbursements worth Rs 195 crore. Launched by the central govt in 2018, Ayushman Bharat allows low-income families to avail medical treatments – anything from routine diagnostic tests to surgeries -- up to Rs 5 lakh a year. Families with annual income of less than Rs 2.5 lakh, elderly people and other vulnerable groups are eligible to get registered under the scheme. Empanelled hospitals provide free-of-charge treatments to beneficiaries and later raise reimbursement requests to the govt on an online portal. These reimbursements are reviewed and cleared by a state agency, after which payments are disbursed. "We have communicated to private hospitals that we have released the funds, and they will soon get it through the Ayushman department. The govt is clear that no private hospital will suffer because of the scheme. There might be some delays, but payments will be made. Also, private hospitals should not deny any patients treatment as it is inhuman and against ethics," said Manish Bansal, director general of health services, Haryana. Joint CEO for Ayushman Bharat scheme in Haryana, Ankita Adhikari, did not respond to repeated requests for comment till Thursday evening. IMA-Haryana also demanded on Thursday that the state should increase its Ayushman Bharat budget to Rs 2,000 crore from the existing Rs 240 crore. "This is not just about dues. The financial design of the scheme is flawed. Hospitals are being forced to either compromise on quality or shut services. We had a meeting with the health department on Wednesday, but we could not arrive at any solution," Jain said. Doctors said they are worried that suspension of the scheme by private facilities will also increase the burden on already-stretched govt hospitals. "We already have a high patient load. If Ayushman beneficiaries from private hospitals land at govt hospitals, then the entire burden will fall on us, but we will provide treatment to all," said Dr Lokveer Singh, principal medical officer at Civil Hospital in Sector 10. Around 650 govt hospitals are empanelled under Ayushman Bharat in the state. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and s ilver prices in your area.
Indian Express
14 hours ago
- Indian Express
Haryana Rs 500 crore dues: 650 pvt hospitals halt Ayushman scheme
The Haryana chapter of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) Thursday announced the suspension of services under Ayushman Bharat–Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) in the state over pending dues of empanelled hospitals despite an assurance from the state government to release the payments at the earliest. In Haryana, the IMA represents nearly 650 private hospitals empanelled under AB-PMJAY, a flagship scheme of the Narendra Modi-led government that provides a health cover of Rs 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care. IMA's Haryana secretary Dhirender K Soni said, 'The government itself admits that Rs 490 crore in dues are pending. By the time they will disperse this amount, the pendency will keep on increasing. What will private hospitals do? How can they sustain if they do not get reimbursements on time?'. Soni said that talks were held Wednesday with senior state government officials, but it did not yield the desired outcome. In a statement, the Haryana branch of the IMA said that state health officials informed them they had received ?245 crore from the government and that payments to empanelled hospitals were being processed on a first-in-first-out basis. The IMA termed the amount 'insufficient.' IMA state unit president Dr Mahaveer P Jain said, 'We have learnt that out of the sanctioned amount of `245 crore, only `30–40 crore has been released to the empanelled hospitals. If we start treating patients, then bills amounting to ?5–7 crore will be raised daily. Now, we want that all the bills are cleared within 15 days'. Earlier on Tuesday, the Haryana government had said that the claims of empanelled hospitals under the Ayushman Bharat scheme are being settled. On Wednesday, Additional Chief Secretary (Health), Sudhir Rajpal, held a detailed meeting with representatives of the IMA to address their concerns regarding delayed payments under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. An official statement said that Rajpal assured them that the state government is actively releasing payments to the empanelled hospitals and remains fully committed to resolving all outstanding issues. He reiterated the government's commitment to clearing all pending dues under the Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana at the earliest. Rajpal had appealed to the IMA representatives and urged them to reconsider their decision on suspending the service, emphasising that such action could disrupt essential healthcare services, particularly for economically weaker sections of society. 'We understand your concerns, and we are working to address them. However, a strike would adversely affect thousands of poor patients who depend on the scheme for timely and affordable treatment,' Rajpal had said. The government maintains that the State Health Agency (SHA), Haryana, has already processed and paid claims submitted by empanelled hospitals up to the first week of May 2025. During the financial year 2025-26, up to July 16, `240.63 crore has been received from the state and central governments and fully utilised for the settlement of eligible claims.
