Hospitals seek happy merger of Ayushman Bharat, Swasthya Sathi

Kolkata: The Association of Hospitals of Eastern India is set to convene an internal meeting and firm up a proposal for a gradual integration of Swasthya Sathi with Ayushman Bharat. A ‘happy integration' of the two schemes would be ideal, said Rupak Barua, president of the association and CEO of Woodlands Hospital. "A partial integration happened in Odisha. We plan to propose a strategy for integration that will ensure that a majority of the Bengal population gets the benefit of the scheme. There will be just one scheme so we need to make it available to as many as possible. We will place our proposal before the state," said Barua.Several hospitals that were not on the Ayushman Bharat panel are now in the process of getting empanelled while patients are still being admitted under Swasthya Sathi and insurance claims are being honoured, said hospitals. Ayushman Bharat is applicable to 30% of the population with the current eligibility criteria while Swasthya Sathi is a universal scheme for all Bengal residents, said Rupali Basu, regional business head – East & AP, HCG Cancer Hospitals. HCG is in the process of getting into the Ayushman panel for its New Town unit."We will have an internal meeting to discuss how to approach the new dispensation and ensure a smooth transition. A transfer to Ayushman Bharat or a merger could take time since the schemes are different and no local resident has the Ayushman Bharat card yet. We have been on the Ayushman Bharat panel for several years and admit patients under the scheme from neighbouring states. We would prefer a scheme that combines the two," said a representative of a hospital on EM Bypass.The state has decided that both schemes will concurrently continue, and, over a short period, be merged or switched over to Ayushman Bharat, said Prashant Sharma, MD of Charnock Hospital and president, Indian Chamber of Commerce healthcare committee. "That is the indication that we have received," he said.