The government government is thinking of reintroducingYeshasvini, which was once regarded as Karnatakas flagship Health scheme, especially focused on the rural Population, including farmers.
The programme rolled out by the department of cooperation was discontinued on May 31, 2018 after the government initiatedArogya Karnatakascheme that later became the co-branded Ayushman Bharat-Arogya Karnataka (AB-ArK) scheme assuring Rs 5 lakh annual aid per BPL family. However, the mandatory referral letter to be obtained by government hospitals to avail treatment in private hospitals under AB-ArK is being seen as a major hurdle.
Yeshasvini, introduced in 2003, was initially meant for rural communities but extended to urban areas 2014 onwards. One of the largest self-funded healthcare schemes in the country, it required a person to be a member of a cooperative Society and covered 823 surgical procedures, which could be availed in empanelled private and government hospitals. The scheme provided a cover of Rs 2 lakh per year per family for rural beneficiaries and Rs 2.5 lakh in urban areas. It was crafted in such a way that members ofYeshasvini trustcontributed a premium which was used as the capital to run it.