Million health cards to be distributed in ex-FATA areas

CM Mahmood calls for expediting Sehat Insaf expansion plan

PESHAWAR: With the provincial government earmarking a project to expand its health insurance scheme — Sehat Insaf Cards to all parts of the province in the budget for the incoming fiscal year 2019-20, the chief minister on Monday called for expediting the process with a million cards to be distributed in the newly-merged districts.

Chairing the progress review meeting regarding the Sehat Sahulat programme, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Chief Minister Mahmood Khan said that the extension of the programme to the entire province, including the erstwhile federally administered tribal areas (Fata).

He added that this will help the government provide health facilities to all citizens of the province.

The chief minister further said that the basic aim of the Sehat Sahulat programme and the Sehat Insaf Card was to facilitate the downtrodden segments of the province in accessing healthcare services in designated hospitals.

Encouraged by the success the programme met in its initial phases, the Sehat Sahulat Programme is now being extended to the entire province, Mahmood said.

During the meeting, CM Mahmood was briefed in detail about the health services and future plans for the provision of health cards to citizens of the province.

The health cards will be provided in a phase-wise manner with a million cards to be provided to citizens in the newly-merged districts initially. The population census for 2017 shows that there are some 5 million residents in the ex-Fata areas, hence the cards will only cover a fifth of the area’s population.

Bajaur tribal district is the most populous region with a population of over 1.09 million. It is followed by Khyber tribal district with a population of 0.99 million, South Waziristan with 0.68 million, Kurram with 0.62 million, North Waziristan with 0.54 million, Mohmand with 0.47 million and Orakzai with just 0.25 million.

It was not immediately clear what will be the distribution of cards in the newly-merged areas?

The chief minister was further told that the selection of non-governmental organisations (NOGs) for the provision of the cards has been finalised. This organization will be responsible for the distribution of the health cards.

Mahmood called for launching an extensive training and awareness campaign for health service providers and end-users which will help educate healthcare providers and citizens on the services to be availed under the programme.

The meeting was also attended by K-P Health Minister Hisham Inamullah Khan, Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister Shahab Ali Shah, Health Secretary Farooq Jameel, SSU Head Sahibzada Saeed, and other officials.

In the budget for the fiscal year 2019-20 announced by the provincial government last month, Rs96.998 billion were earmarked for the health sector in the province with Rs13.607 billion set aside for development projects. Of this, Rs11.849 billion have been allocated for health-related projects in the settled areas while Rs1.758 billion have been set aside for 11 development projects for health in the newly-merged areas. 

Published in The Express Tribune, July 2^nd, 2019.