Health insurance scheme for govt employees on anvil

The government has formulated a scheme that will allow its employees to choose between a health insurance plan provided by an insurer or that from state-run Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS).

At present, the Central government employees are covered under the CHGS scheme, being operated by the health ministry.

"The scheme is already formulated...It will open the choice for government servants," G C Chaturvedi, Additional Secretary in the Finance Ministry told news agency.

The new scheme, which will be placed before the Union Cabinet for approval soon, will immediately benefit at least three lakh Central government employees, he said.

The new scheme, Chaturvedi said, will be more beneficial to the employees who are posted at places where there are no CGHS dispensaries or they are far away from the place of posting.

CGHS dispensaries and hospitals are located only in 26 places in the country.

"Those who are residing outside CGHS dispensaries areas will immediately opt for it... There are over three lakh employees which will immediately opt for it, others will take some time," Chaturvedi said.

The government had earlier appointed a inter-ministerial committee to work out a health insurance scheme to supplement the CGHS scheme to provide better coverage to its employees.