New Delhi: The elderly in Delhi and West Bengal will be deprived of the facility of free and cashless treatment up to Rs 5 lakh annually under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. These two states have not implemented this scheme, which was started six years ago.

It is worth mentioning that in the cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, it has been decided to extend the benefits of Ayushman Bharat Yojana to all the elderly above 70 years of age and the Union Health Ministry is preparing to launch it soon. A senior official of the Health Ministry said that the Ayushman Bharat Yojana runs in collaboration with both the states and the Centre, in which the Central Government bears 60 percent of the expenditure and the states have to pay 40 percent. For hilly states, this ratio is 90 and 10 percent. That is, the benefits of the scheme can be availed only by the citizens of those states who agree to participate in it.

Applicable in 33 states and union territories

He said that so far 33 states and union territories have implemented this scheme. Only West Bengal, Delhi and Odisha have not implemented it. After the BJP came to power in Odisha, the state government is ready to implement the scheme and for this talks are going on with the officials of the Union Health Ministry, but Delhi and West Bengal have not yet shown interest in implementing this scheme.

Elderly people from other states will get benefits

The big thing is that even if the elderly of West Bengal and Delhi do not get the benefit of Ayushman Yojana, the elderly of other states can get free and cashless treatment in the hospitals listed under this scheme in both these states. 78 hospitals in Delhi and 52 hospitals in West Bengal are listed under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. Ayushman Bharat beneficiaries of other states are already getting the benefit of treatment in these hospitals. Obviously, the elderly of other states will also be entitled to treatment in these hospitals.