Govt’s ambitious health plan proposes insurance cover for poor

Health Minister Harsh Vardhan today offered first glimpses into the BJP government’s ambitious Universal Health Assurance (UHA) Scheme which, he said, would have an insurance component, assured package of diagnostics and availability of at least 50 essential drugs.

The government, he said, will pay premium for the poor who cannot afford it and he will ask the Finance Ministry to give incentives to those opting for it so that there is a “big pool” of people availing the benefit which will bring down the premium.

“There has to be an assured preventive and positive health package. There has to be an assured availability of at least 50 medicine which are essentials and an assured package of diagnostics which are absolutely essential.

“The premiums for those underprivileged who cannot pay will be taken care of by the government,” Vardhan said at a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) meet on health insurance.

The 50 medicines will take care of at times 95 per cent of diagnostic.

“UHA Scheme is in the process of being finalised and will be presented to the nation within the current financial year,” he said, adding that he would not share more details because it has to be presented before the Cabinet for final approval.

The government, he said, will negotiate premiums with insurance companies for those who will find it difficult to pay because they think that the companies will exploit them.

Recalling the President’s address to Parliament in June in which he had spoken about the government’s commitment to universal health care, Vardhan said he had formed a committee of experts drawn from related fields and they have reached a “concrete end” after long deliberations.

“Their interim report is with me and I can disclose at this stage that the future indeed looks good,” he said.

Health sector, he said, will seen a boom once the scheme takes off and different industries will benefit from it.

One of the biggest challenges, Vardhan noted, would be to keep up the supply of doctors and technical personnel. The present doctor to population ratio, one to 1,700, needs to be improved. A great number of technical personnel in diagnostics and radiology among others are also necessary, he said.

Insurance sector is hot again, global cos revive India plans

With foreign direct investment (FDI) limit in insurance set to go up to 49% from the current 26%, several global insurance giants are likely to revive their plans to enter the under-penetrated Indian market, according to a report in The Hindustan Times. 

Canada-based Manulife and South Korea’s Samsung Life among others are likely to scout for partners in India, an industry source, who did not wish to be identified, told HT.

Global insurance firms including Metlife, Aegon, Prudential are already present in India.

While the government has failed to get the insurance bill introduced in Parliament in the recently concluded budget session, it has sent it to the select committee in keeping with the Opposition’s demand. Finance minister Arun Jaitley has asked the committee to submit its report by the last day of the first week of the next session. Jaitley has expressed hope that the bill will be taken up during the winter session of Parliament.

While the FDI limit will be raised to 49%, the management control of these firms will remain with Indian promoters for now.

"Due to the delay in the government’s part to increase the FDI limit, most insurers decided to shelve their plans…now with the new government moving fast on raising the FDI limit, these big players would come into the market," the source told Hindustan Times. 

According to estimates by consulting firm KPMG, the move is likely to result in foreign inflows of up to Rs. 25,000 crore. In 2000, the insurance sector was opened up for private players after the enactment of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999 (IRDA Act, 1999).