Payment Issues Fail To Disrupt Healthcare Access in KP

Muhammad Shakeel

Peshawar: “I was on the verge of death, unsure of my survival, when I suffered a heart attack while eating dinner in Kohat. I felt severe pain in my chest and was rushed to Liauqat Memorial Hospital, where doctors gave me initial treatment and immediately referred me to Peshawar for further treatment,” Jamalud Din, a heart patient from Kohat district, narrated his happening.

“The situation was serious, and I was out of money as a result of the market situation and my loss of work in a computer shop.”  “When I was semiconscious on my way to the hospital, my prime concern was how my cash-stripped family would bear the burden of costly treatment in a public sector hospital,” Din recalled.

“However, my worries were evaporated when my family member, who was accompanying me to Peshawar, informed me about the free healthcare facilities being provided to needy and poor patients under the ‘Sehat Card Plus’, which he termed a milestone achievement to help out patients that are unable to bear financial expenses for treatment.”

Despite payment controversies between the provincial government and the State Life Insurance Corporation of Pakistan (SLICP), treatment under the “Sehat Card Plus’ program has continued, with patients receiving free medical and surgical care, regardless of their financial situation.

The previous government established the SCP program in December 2015 as part of a social protection strategy, originally covering free medical, diagnostic, and surgical treatment for around half of the province’s population.

“Treatment under SCP continued in KP despite the financial crisis, and approximately 9.7 million families benefited from the Rs 30 billion incentive in the second phase,” said Dr Riaz Tanoli, Chief Executive Officer of SCP Programme KP.

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He stated that during the first phase, over 2.3 million people received free treatment, and Rs 6 billion was spent on their medical treatment. So date, the project has served nearly one million needy families and provided free treatment to approximately 2.5 million patients.

The project’s yearly cost ramifications are approximately Rs 33 billion, and the government intermittently disburses Rs 2 billion to sustain its operation.

The program was initially launched in the districts of Kohat, Mardan, Malakand, and Chitral, where up to 1.8 million poor households (about 150 million people) were eligible for free medical treatment up to Rs 540,000 at designated hospitals in the province.

Later in February 2019, the program was extended across the country, including all districts of KP, in its second phase, with a target to provide free treatment, including surgeries and medicines, for up to one million rupees to each family of more than 80 million people at 1000 designated hospitals.

The program initially covered 3 per cent of the population in just four districts in 2015 and was later extended to 51 per cent, 70 per cent, and 100 per cent of the population of the province’s population in three different phases until November 2019,” Dr Tanoli explained.

Despite the change of government in KP, he said that the program was continuing unabated, especially in tribal districts, and that the caretaker government had extended support by releasing the project’s assigned funding.

“There is no shortage of funds as the caretaker government in KP has so far released the required amount to SLICP for facilitation and relief of the ailing community,” he said. The SCP program was protected through an act passed by the KP Assembly and would continue until amendments or abolishment by the provincial assembly.

“In this period of unprecedented inflation and price hikes, it is very difficult for poor and marginalised communities to meet both ends while bearing the expenses of costly treatment, which is considered a nightmare by those strata that are living below the poverty line,” said Dr. Naeem Khan, a medical professional.

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He said, “The prices of medicines are ascending with each passing day, as are the charges for treatment, surgical, and diagnostic labs.

“Sehat card is a blessing for those who are unable to meet their daily life expenses owing to their meagre financial resources,” he said, suggesting that the facility must be continued keeping in view the sufferings and poverty of people.

It is relief for those who are moving from pillar to post to end the sufferings of their beloved ones in this time of unprecedented inflation, he said.

Secretary of Health KP Mahmood Aslam has reaffirmed the commitment of the government to provide free healthcare services to all residents of KP. Under the Sahat Card Plus initiative, treatment facilities continue to be accessible to everyone, so that no one is left behind.

“The program has been designed to offer quality healthcare services to all KP residents, regardless of their economic status,” Aslam added.

The health secretary said, “Caretaker Chief Minister Azam Khan has directed the department to continue the provision of free healthcare facilities under the SCP to ailing humanity.”

“As per the CM instructions, the issue of stalled payment of SCP has been addressed, and the required funds were released to the partner of the scheme, i.e., the State Life Insurance Corporation of Pakistan,” added the secretary.

Muhammad Shakeel is a Peshawar-based APP correspondent, and the feature is released by APP.