Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government has allocated an additional Rs 300 crore for Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi (KASP), the health protection scheme designed to provide coverage to over 64 lakh poor and vulnerable people in the state.

With this additional allocation, the total amount earmarked for the flagship scheme in the present financial year has gone up to Rs 978.54 crore, Finance Minister K N Balagopal said in a statement on Sunday.

KASP aims at providing a health cover of Rs 5 lakh annually to over 41.99 lakh poor and vulnerable families (approximately 64 lakh beneficiaries) that form the bottom 40 per cent of the Kerala population.

A total of Rs 700 crore has already been earmarked for the scheme in the state budget for the next financial year, he noted. The minister said that deserving families are provided with free treatment up to Rs 5 lakh per year, benefiting a total of 41.99 lakh poor and vulnerable individuals.

ADVERTISEMENT

Currently, the scheme is available at 197 state-run hospitals, four central hospitals, and 364 private hospitals across Kerala.

TAGS

Google News Add as a preferred source on Google
The comments posted here/below/in the given space are not on behalf of Onmanorama. The person posting the comment will be in sole ownership of its responsibility. According to the central government's IT rules, obscene or offensive statement made against a person, religion, community or nation is a punishable offense, and legal action would be taken against people who indulge in such activities.