Chandigarh:
The General Secretary of the All India Congress Committee, former Union Minister, and Member of Parliament from Sirsa,
Kumari Selja expressed strong displeasure over the Haryana government’s inactivity and bureaucratic arbitrariness regarding the implementation of the Ayushman Bharat/Chirayu scheme. She said that the purpose of this scheme was to provide free and quality healthcare services to the underprivileged sections of the country. However, due to government negligence, bureaucracy has crippled the scheme, depriving the public of its benefits. If this scheme is to be saved, the Prime Minister or the Union Health Minister should intervene directly, as the situation regarding payments between the government and private hospital operators is becoming critical.
In a statement released to the media Kumari Selja said that the Haryana government adopted the scheme under the name Chirayu, but what is currently happening is a direct assault on the public’s health rights. Under this scheme, eligible persons are issued Ayushman cards, which allow them to receive free treatment at listed private hospitals. The government makes payments directly to the hospitals. However, despite praising the scheme at every platform, the government does not pay attention to its implementation. The bureaucracy is acting arbitrarily and has crippled the scheme. Patients and their caregivers, deprived of benefits, are cursing the government bitterly because it is not paying private hospital operators. Even when payments are made, they are done with heavy deductions. As a result, private hospitals are now reluctant to provide treatment under this scheme. Payments to private hospitals are delayed by 3-6 months, while as per the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), payments should be made within 15 days with provisions for interest on delays.
Kumari Selja said the government has refused to pay interest and payments are only made when hospitals threaten to withdraw from the scheme. Unjustified deductions, unnecessary objections, and years-old pending claims are being rejected as false claims. Recently, five popular packages were removed from the private sector, although adequate arrangements for these services are not available in public hospitals. Even after spending Rs. 1300 crore in the financial year 2023-24 and Rs. 1800 crore in 2024-25, the budget for 2025-26 has been drastically reduced to only Rs. 700 crore, despite including citizens aged 70 and above. The MP said Haryana’s bureaucracy is determined to fail this scheme. The participation of private hospitals is the backbone of this scheme, and by harassing them, the scheme is being rendered inactive.
Kumari Selja demanded that the government immediately increase the Ayushman Bharat/Chirayu scheme’s 2025-26 budget to a minimum of Rs. 2000 crore, conduct a high-level inquiry into the delays and deductions in payments, establish transparent dialogue with private hospitals, restore the removed packages, implement the MoU guarantee for interest payments on delays, and that the Prime Minister and Union Health Minister intervene directly to save the scheme. She urged the government to stop deceiving the public. The MP questioned whether this scheme has now become just an election slogan. Kumari Selja asked why the government announced inclusion of the 70+ age group if it cannot increase the budget, calling it a betrayal of the public.
