Rs.150-cr for new insurance scheme

A sum of Rs.150 crore has been allotted initially against newly-formulated Chief Minister's Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme, Finance Minister O. Panneerselvam announced in the Assembly on Thursday.

The old insurance scheme of the DMK regime was terminated, but to benefit patients in the bridge period between suspending the old scheme and launching the new one, a sum of Rs.100 crore was separately allocated, Finance Secretary K. Shanmugam said in his post budget briefing.

The government will focus on improvement of primary health care facilities in urban areas. The 60 centres already sanctioned under the National Rural Health Mission, will be shifted under the administrative and technical control of the Directorate of Public Health. Further, the Finance Minister announced that Urban Primary Health Care centres will be set up in 75 more small urban towns. A super-speciality centre, at a cost of Rs.100 crore, would be set up in Annal Gandhi Government Hospital, Tiruchi.