Calcutta HC Rejects PIL Against Bengal's Health Insurance Initiative
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Synopsis
The Calcutta High Court has dismissed a public interest litigation against the Swasthya Sathi health insurance scheme in West Bengal, stating it cannot interfere with state government initiatives aimed at public welfare.
Key Takeaways
- The Calcutta High Court dismissed a PIL against Swasthya Sathi.
- The scheme is aimed at public health insurance.
- The court emphasized not interfering with state initiatives.
- The scheme provides up to Rs 5,00,000 coverage per family.
- Concerns were raised about private hospital acceptance of cards.
Kolkata, Jan 30 (NationPress) The Calcutta High Court on Thursday rejected a public interest litigation opposing Swasthya Sathi, the health insurance initiative of West Bengal.
In the litigation, it was claimed that the scheme was launched merely for political reasons and that the majority of the population does not receive any real benefits from it. The petitioner also claimed that numerous private healthcare facilities often decline to accept Swasthya Sathi cards, and that certain medical treatments are excluded from the coverage provided by the scheme.
The case was heard on Thursday by a division bench consisting of Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam and Justice Hirnamay Bhattacharya, who dismissed the petition, stating that the court should not interfere with a scheme established by the state government aimed at public welfare.
The bench noted that since the scheme was based on specific state policies, this further justified the court's decision to refrain from intervening.
The division bench also inquired what the petitioner would have done if the scheme had not been implemented at all. They suggested that the petitioners should discuss their grievances with elected officials, such as MPs and MLAs, if necessary.
The Swasthya Sathi scheme was launched in 2016 after the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government in West Bengal secured a second term. Under this initiative, every family in the state is eligible for health insurance coverage of up to Rs 5,00,000 annually.
Nonetheless, the opposition party, BJP, has consistently argued that a comparable central initiative, named Ayushman Bharat, is deliberately being obstructed from being implemented in West Bengal by the state government.
The Trinamool Congress, however, has consistently claimed that Swasthya Sathi offers advantages over Ayushman Bharat, as there are no pre-conditions for accessing the state’s health insurance scheme.
