ESIC will run all its hospitals as state govt lags
Published: Dec 09, 2020
By TIOLCORPLAWS News Service
NEW DELHI, DEC 9, 2020: DUE to poor management in the state government hospitals, the Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) said they will directly run all newly constructed hospitals to ensure quality medical service for industrial workers.
"Several representatives have been received about deficient services in ESI hospitals run by state governments due to poor availability of equipment and doctors," the Labour Ministry-run ESIC said on Tuesday.
"In view of demand from both workers and employees and with the objective to provide better medical services to beneficiaries, ESI Corporation has decided to directly run by itself all newly constructed hospitals and those that are approved in future unless the state government insists to run the hospital."
ESIC beneficiaries can currently avail medical services at 1,520 dispensaries and 159 hospitals of which 45 dispensaries and 49 hospitals are directly run by them while the remaining are under the states.
Its beneficiaries can now avail medical consultations and health services in any nearby hospital empanelled under ESIC or Ayushmann Bharat in case of emergency. At present, the insured persons were required to go to an ESIC dispensary or hospital to obtain a referral for hospitalisation.
In such cases if admission for in-hospital treatment is required, the empanelled hospital will obtain timebound permission from the ESI approving authority through an online system.
The only difference is that treatment will be cashless in the empanelled private hospital and reimbursements as per the Central Government Health Services (CGHS) rates in non-empanelled private hospitals.
