PESHAWAR: The provincial government has empanelled 28 more hospitals for free treatment on Sehat Card Plus due to continuous increase in number of patients after extension of the scheme to cover the entire population of the province last year.

Approval was granted to the new health facilities in a meeting of Sehat Card Steering Committee chaired by Health Minister Taimur Jhagra here on Sunday, said a press release.

It said that a total of 271 hospitals had applied for empanelment, of which the facilities fulfilling the criteria were recommended by State Life Insurance Corporation (SLIC) after a thorough process of evaluation.

It said that the recommendations were verified by a committee formed by health department with director of independent monitoring unit as its head to ensure transparent empanelment of hospitals.

The release said that the committee also heard complaints of hospitals, which failed to get empanelled and reviewed their cases.

On the occasion, the minister also congratulated staffers of Social Health Protection Initiative and SLIC on first-ever successful liver transplant on Sehat Card Plus. He appreciated the efforts of the relevant offices and instructed them to keep the momentum of transparency.

A joint committee of health department and SLIC was constituted to propose further improvements in empanelment process and transparency within two weeks.

The minister said that continuous empanelment process to register more hospitals was meant for effective patient care. In this way, the health facilities would get opportunities to get empanelled in the programme, leading to better health services to the patients in all districts of the province, he added.

The minister also directed the officials concerned to upgrade and revamp the official website of the programme.

The stakeholders were asked to finalise a programme for government employees in the current financial year.

The programme would allow the government servants of health insurance up to Rs10 million with hospitalisation as well as OPD.

Published in Dawn, February 7th, 2022