Why in news?

Karnataka has recorded the highest ever pre-authorisations (1.55 lakh) under the Ayushman Bharat-Arogya Karnataka, its flagship health insurance scheme, in May this year.

Highlights:

• While over 13 lakh pre-authorisations were recorded in the whole of last year, nearly 3 lakh have been recorded in the first two months of this financial year itself.
• According to data from the Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust (SAST), the nodal agency that is implementing the health scheme, this year so far the demand is high for simple secondary general procedures followed by general medicine and gynaecology.

Highest pre-authorisations

• Of the total 1, 55,098 preauthorisations recorded this financial year, 91.3% are from public health institutions. Bengaluru Urban, Hassan, and Mandya have recorded the highest with 12,404, 10,826, and 10,198, respectively.
• Yadgir, Kodagu, and Chickballapur have recorded the lowest with 2,241, 2,245, and 2,309 pre-authorisations respectively.

The scheme

• Arogya Karnataka that was rolled out in March, 2018, was co-branded with Ayushman Bharat on October 30 the same year, after the State signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Centre.
• Following the co-branding of the two schemes, the annual health cover (under Arogya Karnataka) of ₹1.5 lakh a year for a BPL family of five, with additional assistance of ₹50,000 in some cases, has been enhanced to ₹5 lakh a year per family in the State.
• The integrated scheme covers simple secondary, complex secondary, tertiary and emergency procedures. Primary treatments and simple secondary procedures are limited only to public health institutions (PHIs).

• Complex secondary procedures, tertiary procedures, and emergency procedures are performed in PHIs and empanelled private hospitals.