CGHS-2

Discrimination by CGHS

Second opinion: Sanjog Maheshwari

The healthcare and medical facilities provided under the Central Government Health Scheme suffer from several anomalies. While right to healthcare and medical facilities should be seen as an integral part of the right to life for all, the babus have ensured that world class healthcare, diagnostic and other medical facilities at posh private nursing homes, hospitals, healthcare centres at Government cost is available only to the MPs and other so-called VIPs. The nursing home facilities in Government hospitals are also mostly cornered by such higher strata beneficiaries.

Medical specialists attached to the CGHS dispensaries, if they happen to be of some calibre, remain unavailable on their slotted schedule, as for months on end they are away on what is termed as VIP duties -- attending to the VIPs and their families.

There also exists a complex classification and sub-classification of CGHS beneficiaries in various categories, based on which the scale of facilities admissible to them under the scheme is decided. The parameters and norms differ from beneficiary to beneficiary, depending on the scale of pay or pension, the position he holds or held in the Government, etc.

What is appalling is the fact that the pensioner-beneficiaries of autonomous bodies are not treated at par with their counterpart retired from purely Government service, particularly in the matter of grant of credit facilities in the recognised private healthcare centres, nursing homes, etc. Are they not as precariously placed both health-wise and resources-wise as their counterparts who retired from "purely Government service"?

The plight of an autonomous body pensioner, suffering from age-induced infirmities and debilitating diseases, is that he has to run around complying with absurd formalities, placating babus, getting department's permission before and after the treatment, incurring all expenses from his own slender resources on the spot in the first instance irrespective of the enormity of the amount of expenditure involved, etc.

Is the life of a Class IV employee less valuable than that of a Class I officer? As respected senior citizens of this country, all pensioners should be treated at par, particularly in the matter of healthcare and medical facilities.