Mamata Banerjee’s Swasthya Sathi faces hospital roadblocks after Bengal poll result
Patients covered under Swasthya Sathi, the flagship health insurance programme of the previous Mamata Banerjee government, are reportedly being denied admission or turned away by several private hospitals in Kolkata as uncertainty grows over whether the incoming Bharatiya Janata Party government will retain the scheme or replace it with Ayushman Bharat.
The refusals have increased since the change in government became clear following the election result, hospital sources told The Times of India.
Hospitals pause admissions
At least one major hospital chain along EM Bypass has reportedly stopped Swasthya Sathi admissions across all its units, which together treated more than 250 beneficiaries every month.
A multispeciality hospital in south Kolkata that earlier admitted around 30 Swasthya Sathi patients daily, many for cardiac procedures, has also sharply curtailed fresh admissions, allowing only emergency and critical cases, The Times of India reported
“We are waiting for a government directive, which may not come immediately,” a senior executive at one hospital chain said.
Another hospital official said the suspension was unofficial but added that the scheme had long been financially unviable for many private facilities.
Selective treatment continues
Some hospitals that have not formally halted admissions are reportedly limiting treatment under the scheme.
Woodlands Hospital is said to be restricting admissions largely to cardiac and certain cancer patients.
Hospital CEO Rupak Barua said reimbursement rates under the scheme had made it difficult for hospitals to continue full-scale participation.
Ruby General Hospital, however, said it was still admitting Swasthya Sathi patients and receiving approvals for claims, media reports said.
The hospital treats over 200 beneficiaries each month, officials said, though they acknowledged uncertainty over the future.
Future of scheme under watch
Launched by the previous government, Swasthya Sathi offers annual health coverage of up to Rs 5 lakh per family and became one of the most prominent welfare programmes in West Bengal.
With the BJP set to assume office, hospitals and patients are now waiting to see whether the state will continue with Swasthya Sathi, modify it, or merge with the Centre’s Ayushman Bharat programme.
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