Sehat finally on the cards

After an interval of a year, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) government has finally released Rs110 million reserved funds for the free treatment of critical diseases under the Sehat Insaf Card. However, this amount is significantly lower than the previous years.

On the other hand, the Sehat Plus programme received its first application from a cancer patient seeking treatment under the reserved funds. During the caretaker government in the province, a financial crisis led to the significant reduction of funds for the Sehat Card program.

In September 2023, the programme’s coverage was limited to only three critical conditions: dialysis, cancer, and emergency treatment.

Furthermore, the reserved funds, which were meant to support the treatment of the most critical patients, had completely stopped. As a result, patients in need of kidney and liver transplants, those in intensive care units (ICUs), and individuals undergoing chemotherapy, faced immense challenges in accessing free treatment. This had a devastating impact on the care of many critically ill patients. Following their assumption of power in the province, the PTI government reinstated free treatment under the health card programme across the province, effective March 12.

However, despite this, the reserved funds were stagnant. According to credible sources, the K-P government released Rs5 billion to the insurance company to restore health card services and treatment.

However, health officials reveal that a total of Rs16 billion have been paid to the insurance company to date. Despite this, the government still has outstanding liabilities of Rs9 billion.

Additionally, sources indicate that Rs3 billion were allocated specifically for free treatment under the health card programme in June and July alone.

Officials further stated that the recent government has released Rs110 million as reserved funds. Previously, the government paid Rs40 per family to the insurance company, totalling around Rs500 million.