Hyderabad: Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka on Friday said the Telangana government had introduced the New Employees Health Scheme to provide comprehensive cashless healthcare for government employees, pensioners and their dependent family members.
He, along with Health Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha, formally launched the scheme at the Secretariat and distributed health cards to beneficiaries.
According to Bhatti, the initiative was designed to ensure employees received quality medical care without financial hardship. He added that the scheme reflected the government’s commitment to employee welfare.
Around 8 lakh government employees and pensioners, along with nearly 29.8 lakh dependent family members, will benefit from the programme.
Further, beneficiaries can receive cashless inpatient treatment at 886 empanelled private hospitals across the state. The scheme covers 1,816 medical and surgical procedures under Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) package rates.
New Employees Health Scheme covers 1,816 treatments
Meanwhile, Bhatti said the government had established a dedicated trust with equal representation from officials and employee unions to ensure transparent implementation of the scheme.
In addition, he said a Cabinet sub-committee examined employees’ concerns before finalising the policy. Bhatti chaired the panel, while Ministers Duddilla Sridhar Babu, Ponnam Prabhakar and Seethakka served as members.
The Deputy Chief Minister criticised the previous BRS government for neglecting employees’ healthcare demands. He alleged that the previous administration left nearly ₹10,000 crore in pending medical reimbursement bills.
As a result, the present government was clearing those dues in phases by releasing around ₹2,000 crore every month. Additionally, Bhatti said he personally reviewed the process every fortnight to ensure no eligible payments remained pending.
The Deputy Chief Minister also said the government had increased the Rajiv Aarogyasri coverage limit from ₹5 lakh to ₹10 lakh. Consequently, more than 1.06 crore eligible families were receiving free corporate healthcare under the scheme.
Finally, he urged government employees to continue serving the public with greater commitment. He said they played a vital role in implementing welfare programmes across the state.
Chief Secretary Sanjay Jaju, Health Principal Secretary Dr Christina Z. Chongthu, Education Secretary Yogita Rana, Special Chief Secretary Ben Hur Mahesh Dutt Ekka, Finance Principal Secretary Sandeep Kumar Sultania and representatives of employee unions attended the launch.