Modicare initiates empanelment of hospitals
New Delhi, July 4: The National Health Agency (NHA) on Wednesday called on public and private hospitals to get empaneled under the Ayushman Bharat programme, popularly known as Modicare, with the "motto of service to mankind" to achieve universal health coverage.
"I call upon each one of you to partner with the mission through the empanelment process initiated today to enhance the accessibility," NHA and Ayushman Bharat CEO Indu Bhushan said, urging the healthcare service providers to join the revolution in "spirit and deed".
Bhushan also requested the governments of all states and Union Territories to help the Ayushman Bharat - National Health Protection Mission (AB-NHPM) in garnering the support of hospitals and healthcare providers across the country for the path-breaking mission.
The objective is to improve access for the most vulnerable, unreached sections of the population and holistically address healthcare by covering prevention, promotion and ambulatory care at primary, secondary and tertiary levels, Bhushan said.
Ayushman Bharat Deputy CEO Dinesh Arora said the mission provides financial protection to 10.74 crore deprived rural families and identified occupational categories of urban workers' families as per the latest Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) data. It provides a cover for cashless hospitalization services of up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year.
The State Health Agencies (SHA) will start empaneling private and public healthcare service providers and facilities through State Empanelment Committees (SEC). At the district and block level, workshops will be held to brief on empanelment criteria, packages, processes and queries.
Facilities undertaking defined speciality packages will be required to satisfy additional requirements.
Specific criteria are outlined for cardiology and cardio-thoracic vascular services, cancer care, neurosurgery, burns, plastic and reconstructive surgery, neonatal/paediatric surgery, polytrauma, nephrology and urology surgery.
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Assam hit by 5.1 magnitude earthquake; no casualty reported
Guwahati (PTI): An earthquake of 5.1 magnitude jolted the central part of Assam on Monday morning, an official bulletin said.
There is no immediate report of any injury to anyone or damage to any property, officials said.
A National Centre for Seismology report said the quake was recorded at 4.17 am in Morigaon district on the southern bank of Brahmaputra, at a depth of 50 km.
The epicentre of the earthquake was located at a latitude 26.37 N and longitude of 92.29 E in central Assam, it added.
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People in the neighbouring Kamrup Metropolitan, Nagaon, East Karbi Anglong, West Karbi Anglong, Hojai, Dima Hasao, Golaghat, Jorhat, Sivasagar, Charaideo, Cachar, Karimganj, Hailakandi, Dhubri, South Salmara-Mankachar and Goalpara districts also felt the jolt.
Darrang, Tamulpur, Sonitpur, Kamrup, Biswanath, Udalguri, Nalbari, Bajali, Barpeta, Baksa, Chirang, Kokrajhar, Bongaigaon and Lakhimpur on the northern bank of Brahmaputra too felt the tremor.
The earthquake could be felt in some areas of central-western Arunachal Pradesh, entire Meghalaya, and several areas of Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura and West Bengal.
Central-eastern Bhutan, parts of China and Bangladesh were also shaken, the report showed.
The tremor forced people to scamper out of their homes to open areas from their sleep.
The northeastern region falls in the high seismic zone, making it earthquake-prone.
