Balasore: People of Odisha should not be deprived of the benefits of the world’s largest healthcare coverage plan - Ayushman Bharat - on the grounds of political differences, said Union Health Minister JP Nadda today.
Speaking on the sidelines of the foundation stone-laying ceremony of a satellite centre of Bhubaneswar AIIMS in Balasore, the Union Minister said, “It is not good that people of the State get deprived of the benefits of the scheme due to political differences.”
He further informed that a beneficiary from one State can avail treatment at an empanelled hospital located in another State without any hassles under Ayushman Bharat. People from both urban and rural areas can get the benefits under the Ayushman Bharat scheme, he added.
He also denied concerns over mandatory Aadhaar card linking under Ayushman Bharat scheme, which will be launched by the Centre across the country from September 25. “As the benefits will be provided on the basis of the QR code given to beneficiaries, the Aadhaar card linking talks are baseless,” the minister added.
Earlier the ruling-BJD had stated that, after the Centre disagreed to a demand from Odisha government to include 70 lakh people of the State under the Ayushman Bharat scheme, the Naveen Patnaik-led government launched its own healthcare coverage scheme – ‘Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana – on August 15.