Punjab to issue health cards for cardiac, cancer treatment

Each beneficiary to be eligible for free treatment worth Rs1m

LAHORE:

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has ordered issuance of cards for the treatment of cardiac and cancer patients in the province.

The chief minister was chairing a meeting where she was briefed on the Cancer and Cardiac Surgery Special Card Project and the Cancer Patients Card initiative. Officials informed her that under the initiative, the Punjab government would bear the complete treatment expenses of patients suffering from cancer and heart diseases.

Every patient will be able to avail treatment facilities worth up to Rs1 million through the card.

In the first phase, 45,000 patients across Punjab will benefit from the initiative.

The officials said heart surgeries would also be performed free of charge.

The chief minister also sought a comprehensive programme regarding timely treatment of patients of stroke.

The chief minister directed the relevant authorities that the OPD Block of Nawaz Sharif Institute of Cancer Treatment and Research be made functional by January 17 and the NS Institute of Cardiology Sargodha by January 31. She was informed that the Board of Governors of the cancer institute had approved recruitment to 219 posts in the first phase.

The OPD, IPD, emergency, pathology and radiology departments of the cardiology institute will become functional by January 31 and recruitment to 258 posts has been approved in the first phase.

Officials said the Jinnah Institute of Cardiology would become functional on February 15 adding that its Board of Governors has approved recruitment to fill 1,104 posts.

They said 537,511 patients in the province had received medicines worth Rs480 million at their homes.

During the past 11 months, government hospitals have conducted 105,155 angiographies and 157,950 echocardiographies.