The Vajpayee Arogyashree Scheme was launched with the objective of minimising medical expenditure on chronic illnesses, of those belonging to the lower economic strata of society.
This scheme ensures that all costs pertaining to hospitalisation, as well as surgical, diagnostic, and therapeutic costs are incurred by the state government.
Under the aegis of this scheme, each family receives an annual cover of Rs. 1.5 Lakhs, and is applicable to up to five members of a family. On a yearly basis, a family can avail of as many as 60 follow-up procedures.
The scheme covers cancer, burns, cardiovascular diseases, kidney diseases, neonatal diseases, neurological diseases, renal diseases, and polytrauma diseases.
Treatment of chronic illnesses can lead to a family spending their hard-earned money towards hospitalisation, surgical, diagnostic, and therapeutic as well as post-recovery expenses. The Vajpayee Arogyashree scheme seeks to minimise the expenditure by providing quality medical care to poor households at reasonable rates with the State Government incurring the entire cost of treatment.
If you live in either the urban or rural part of Karnataka, you can easily enrol in the scheme to avail various benefits. Some of the key details of the Vajpayee Arogyashree scheme are:
People of all ages can enrol in this scheme as it has no upper age limit.
Scheme benefits are available to a maximum of five members of a family.
Each family is given an annual cover of ₹1.5 lakh on a floater basis, on exhaustion of which, an additional amount of ₹50,000 is provided.
All enrolled family members can use the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Health Card to get free treatment with coverage for any pre-existing diseases.
The scheme is fully funded by the State Government, and hence, no payment towards premium is required.
As many as 60 procedures are listed for follow-up treatment that a beneficiary has access to on a yearly basis.
While the scheme covers a wide variety of diseases, some of the main ones are listed below:
Cardiovascular diseases
Cancer
Burns
Kidney diseases
Neonatal cases
Neurological diseases
Polytrauma cases
Renal diseases
All ‘Below Poverty Line’ families living in Karnataka are eligible to take advantage of the benefits offered by the Vajpayee Arogyashree scheme. Identification of beneficiaries under this scheme is done through the government-issued BPL ration cards. The beneficiaries need to present their BPL ration cards at the time of registration and making a claim.
To be eligible for the Vajpayee Arogyashree - Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust scheme, a beneficiary living in the state of Karnataka should hold a BPL ration card provided by the food, civil supplies, and consumer affairs department. Such households are defined as ‘eligible households’ according to the National Food Security Act, 2013. Those who do not fall in this category can avail treatment under this scheme on a co-payment basis.
You will need the following documents to apply for the Vajpayee Arogyashree Scheme:
Aadhaar Card
Self-declaration
BPL Card
PDS Card
When you proceed for enrolment, your Aadhaar card is used to verify the biometrics against the CIDR Aadhaar server. Once authenticated, the e-KYC details are automatically filled in. A unique patient ID called the ArKID is generated by enrolling the applicant on the official website of Arogya Karnataka.
An SMS alert is also sent to your registered Vajpayee Arogyashree contact number confirming the successful registration of the applicant. The ArKID is the PDS card number followed by a separator and a number for each family member. You can get this unique scheme ID printed on a UHC card by paying ₹10. Your photo, name and other details along with the ArKID are printed on the UHC card which you can carry to the nearest hospital for treatment.
District and Taluka hospitals as well as those in urban areas are a part of the scheme. A few of the Vajpayee Arogyashree scheme hospitals are mentioned below:
Karnataka Institute of Medical Science, Hubbali
Gulbarga Institute of Medical Science, Kalaburagi
District hospital Madikeri, Kodagu
K C General Hospital, Malleshwaram, Bangalore
Mandya Institute of Medical Science, Teaching Hospital, Mandya
Wenlock District Hospital Mangalore
General Hospital Hunsur, Mysore
Bidar District Hospital
Jayanagar General Hospital, Bangalore
Taluk Hospital Mudhol, Bagalkot
The Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust (SAST) is a special purpose vehicle incorporated under the Indian Trust Act, 1882. It functions under the Karnataka Government's Department of Health and Family Welfare. The main purpose of Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust is to ensure a reduction in direct spending on healthcare using strategic measures.
One of these measures is to get super speciality private and public healthcare providers that will deliver better tertiary care to patients. It is also responsible for the management of various government schemes like Vajpayee Arogyashree scheme, Indira Suraksha Yojana, Rajiv Arogya Bhagya, Jyothi Sanjeevini Scheme, Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana, etc.
The Vajpayee Arogyashree Yojana is a cashless scheme, meaning the beneficiaries do not have to pay any money at the network hospitals. Instead, the insurer directly settles the hospital bills upon treatment. However, if the hospital bill exceeds the maximum claim amount, the beneficiary may have to pay the remaining bills out of their own pocket.
To ensure that unexpected medical conditions in the future do not drain your financial resources, it is important to be prepared for such a situation. Health Insurance available on Bajaj Markets allows you to choose a cover of up to ₹50 lakh as per your needs. Cashless treatment is provided at more than 6,500 network hospitals in India so that you and your family get the best possible medical care.
The health insurance plans available on Bajaj Markets come with additional ambulance cover to help you reach the hospital in time when an emergency strikes. So, choose a customised health insurance plan today and safeguard your family’s health!
If you are living in Karnataka and have a BPL (Below Poverty Line) ration card provided by the Food, Civil Supplies, and Consumer Affairs Department, you are eligible for the Vajpayee Arogyashree scheme.
A PDS card or BPL ration card, Aadhaar card, and a mandatory self-declaration form are required to enrol for this scheme.
Cancer, burns, kidney, neurological, and cardiovascular diseases as well as neonatal and polytrauma cases are covered under the Vajpayee Arogyashree scheme.
No, you do not need to pay any premium as the scheme is fully funded by the state government.
There is no upper age limit and people of all age groups can enrol in this scheme.