Chandigarh: Punjab’s Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana (MMSY) has benefited over 4.4 lakh people across the state, with cashless treatment worth Rs 782.79 crore provided so far, according to the State Health Agency (SHA), Punjab.The latest SHA data till June 23 showed Patiala topping the state in both the number of beneficiaries and expenditure under the scheme.Under the MMSY, beneficiaries are provided cashless treatment in govt and empanelled private hospitals. The data showed Patiala topped the state with 52,672 patients and treatment expenditure of nearly Rs 79.15 crore. Bathinda followed with 30,813 patients and Rs 76.81 crore expenditure, while Ludhiana recorded 44,227 patients and Rs 60.54 crore spending. The data indicated Patiala’s lead reflected stronger hospital linkages and greater awareness about the scheme among beneficiaries.In a statement, health minister Dr Balbir Singh stated, “It is a shift from out-of-pocket struggle to structured care.” He opined, “The Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana is not merely a policy on paper; it is a lifeline for families who once feared hospital bills more than illness itself.”Across Punjab, districts such as Jalandhar (27,682 patients), Amritsar (20,503) and SAS Nagar (20,085) showed strong uptake, while Kapurthala (9,384) and Malerkotla (3,181) reflected growing penetration of the programme.Dr Balbir Singh emphasised the reach and said, “Our aim is simple, no family in Punjab should be pushed into poverty because of illness. The scheme is expanding its reach every quarter.”Gurmeet Singh, a 62-year-old farmer from Mansa said, “If this scheme wasn’t there, I would have sold land for treatment.” The report said such testimonies echoed across districts like Sangrur, Hoshiarpur, and Ferozepur, where hospital admissions under the Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana continued to climb.The report added that districts with moderate numbers, such as Gurdaspur and Rupnagar, showed steady adoption, suggesting that awareness and hospital empanelment were beginning to take hold. MSID:: 131995886 413 |
