Health insurance renewals on the wane in Jumla

Jumla, May 23: The number of people renewing their health insurance in Jumla district has been declining in recent years, according to the Health Insurance Board in the district. 

According to Tirtharaj Joshi, Registration Officer at the Board, shared the number of health insurers in the district stands at over 103,000 individuals from 14,885 households. 

However, only 44,479 policies remain active while nearly 56,000 people did not renew their insurance, added Joshi.

Among the insurers, 3,923 are senior citizens while 98 are people with severe disabilities and 306 are from the families of female community health volunteers, he said.

The data show that 17,312 people from extremely poor households did not renew their insurance, contributing significantly to the decline in renewal.  

The number of insurers from such a background increased after the government discontinued its free renewal policy for extremely poor families, explained Joshi. 

The government still provides free health insurance for people with disabilities, leprosy patients, people living with HIV and senior citizens. 

Others can avail health insurance coverage worth Rs 100,000 by paying a premium fee, according to the Board.

The Board has made an arrangement for registration officials to make door-to-door visits to encourage massive participation of the beneficiaries into the programme.

Local residents opine that a number of factors have played roles for lower renewals including lack of medicines in designated hospitals, long waiting lines in healthcare facilities, delays and complaints from hospitals over unpaid insurance claims for insured patients, among others. 

The health insurance programme was introduced in Jumla in 2074 BS. (RSS)