KARACHI: Sindh Health Department completed all arrangements to launch the Universal Health Insurance Policy to ensure the provision of cost-effective, quality healthcare facilities across the province.
Consultation with all the stakeholders has also been carried out for the rolling out of the Universal Health Insurance Policy, while the Sindh Health and Law departments have agreed to work together to meet all the legal requirements, according to a statement issued on Tuesday.
The agreement was reached in a meeting between Sindh’s Caretaker Minister of Health, Social Welfare, Public Health Engineering, and Rural Development, Dr Saad Khalid Niaz, and Caretaker Law Minister Umar Soomro.
The Health Minister said that Universal Health Insurance is a revolutionary project that will provide quality and affordable treatment to the people of the province, while free treatment will be given to people living below the poverty line.
He said that health insurance will not only provide quality healthcare facilities to the public, but it will also help improve the hospitals’ condition and benefit medical staff.
He said that the preparations of the Sindh Health Department concerning the policy were complete, while some legal complications would also be dealt with the help of the Law Department.
The minister expressed hope that with the final approval of the cabinet, Universal Health Insurance would be launched across the province soon.
Sindh to Launch Health Cards Program
The law minister, Umar Soomro, said that health cards had already been issued to people from the other three provinces of the country; therefore, the people of Sindh should also get health cards.
He said that through the 18th constitutional amendment, the subject of health was handed over to provinces, and there was immense potential for taking revolutionary steps at the provincial level.
The law minister added that the caretaker government intended to work efficiently for the welfare of the people of the province.
