“Till date, 20.46 lakh golden cards have been issued. At least one member of 6.68 lakh families has been issued golden card in the Jammu region,” an official said.
One of the most successful public health interventions in contemporary human history, vaccinations have aided the world in eradicating multiple diseases and brought many others to the brink of elimination. It saves 2 to 3 million lives each year from diseases such as tetanus, influenza, measles and diphtheria. Not only are vaccines critical for preventing infectious diseases, but also for controlling the severity and spread of such diseases.
The pandemics of the past have taught us the rarity of a vaccine to be developed in less than five years. Nevertheless, in 2020, the world found itself in a race against time to develop and deliver vaccination against the novel coronavirus. The targeted timeline for creating a vaccine for COVID-19 was pegged at 12 to 18 months. However, within one year of beginning research, more than half a dozen vaccines have been approved, and several are near approval for emergency mass use.
ESIC continues to abandon adult dependents with disabilities
The benefits available under ESIC include medical treatment, maternity, pension for dependents and disablement etc. (Image Source/Representative image)
Updated: Mar 3, 2021, 10:00 AM IST
As the labour laws take a new look in India, the Employees State Insurance (ESI) Act, 1948 continues to abandon the lakhs of dependent adults with disabilities.
The benefits available under ESIC include medical treatment, maternity, pension for dependents and disablement, etc. Among the benefits, it covers the treatment of the workers and their dependents including parents, siblings and children. The children remain insured until they are 25 and siblings until they are 18[1]. There is no exemption for the sons or daughters or siblings with disabilities who may continue to remain dependents, even after that age.
PTI | Ahmedabad | Updated: 27-02-2021 18:27 IST | Created: 27-02-2021 18:22 IST
Representative image Image Credit: ANI
Eligible COVID-19 vaccine aspirants in Gujarat will have to pay Rs 250 per shot if they opt to get themselves inoculated at 522 designated private hospitals during the second phase of the vaccination drive beginning March 1, the state government said on Saturday.
However, the aspirants above 60 years of age and those aged 45 years and above with comorbidities can get the shots free across the network of over 2,000 government hospitals in the state, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel, who heads Health department, told reporters.
He said those seeking vaccination at private hospitals empanelled under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (PMJAY) and the state government s Ma Vatsalya Yojana will have to pay Rs 250 for each dose of the vaccine, which included Rs 150 as the cost of the vaccine and Rs 100 as administration charge.
Express News Service
NEW DELHI: Less than half the money allocated for the Centre’s flagship health scheme Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana has been utilised in 2020-21, as health services across the country suffered due to pandemic and lockdown, government data shows.
As per the expenditure profile document of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Rs 6,400 crore was allocated for the scheme before being revised to only Rs 3,100 crore as hospitalisation rates drastically fell March onwards.
For the coming fiscal too, the government has estimated Rs 6,400 crore for the programme.
Launched in September 2018, PMJAY provides for free secondary and tertiary hospitalisation of up to Rs 5 lakh for nearly 10 crore families across the country and covers 1573 procedures including 23 specialties.