PESHAWAR: According to officials, the government has chosen to give State Life Insurance Corporation an extra Rs250 million in order to establish a “reserve fund” and guarantee continuous free dialysis and treatment for cancer patients on Sehat Card Plus.
Following a partial suspension of nearly a year, the government restored free treatment for individuals early this month with the allocation of Rs. 5 billion. “State Life Insurance Corporation, the program’s executor, has asked the government to release an extra Rs400 million to create reserve funds and ensure that those undergoing dialysis and suffering from cancer can continue to receive cashless services under the program,” officials stated.
They claimed that during a meeting last week, Health Minister Syed Qasim Ali Shah committed to allocating Rs250 million towards the initiative, which would provide uninterrupted care for cancer and dialysis patients.
“On March 12, treatment services on card have resumed throughout the province and at embanelled hospitals nationwide; however, we have asked the minister for additional funding, which he has granted,” they stated. Each household in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was reported to be eligible for free healthcare annually under policy, but if a patient needed more than Rs400,000, their case was forwarded to the reserve fund committee, which approved it.
Renal and liver transplants may eventually be included in the program, according to officials.
Officials stated that the insurance business kept a reserve money of Rs. 500 million during the program’s peak before the caretaker government limited it to three critical ailments. They clarified that the money was only used for those who had used up all Rs 400,000 of the allocated amount.
They stated that although there was no evidence to resume liver and kidney transplants on SCP, it would allow cancer patients and those in need of dialysis to receive continuing services as they required lifelong care. The relative costs of the two surgeries were Rs 1.4 million and Rs 5 million. 64 liver and 164 kidney transplants have been carried out thus far using reserve funds.
According to officials, there were still patients on SCP waiting for liver and kidney transplants, but these procedures could not yet be included in the program.
Individuals who have damage to both kidneys can only live after receiving a kidney transplant. They are forced to use dialysis if not. The same is true for those who have liver cirrhosis, as they are only able to survive following transplants, they noted.
According to officials, in order to make the program sustainable, the caretaker government had considered limiting free treatment services to 66% of the province’s low-income population. However, that idea was abandoned when the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Inaf government decided to extend the program to the entire population and pass the Universal Health Coverage Act, 2022.
“There are currently no prospects for free transplants, but the government may include renal and liver transplants in the program at a later time,” they stated.
According to officials, the majority of cancer and dialysis patients used up the whole annual funding cap while receiving services; thus, they were reimbursed from reserve funds. Patients have been requesting liver and kidney transplants, but we are unable to fulfill their demands at this time, the spokesperson stated. Some patients have already undergone testing and have found donors.
