Free treatment of heart, kidney and bone diseases for BPL persons, says Government

New Delhi, Mar 12 (ANI): The government on Friday declared that treatment for heart, kidney and bone diseases would be provided free of cost to all patients living below the poverty line (BPL) and at subsidized rates to others in the government hospitals.

Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said during Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha today that the government is taking all steps possible to meet requirements, as patients from all over the country come to Delhi for such treatments.

"We have started a two-pronged strategy-increasing the number of specialist and super-specialist doctors, and creating infrastructure," said Azad.

"We are trying to upgrade both human resources and infrastructure simultaneously. This year 4,000 additional specialists and super specialists would be added," he added.

Azad further said that out of the eight proposed All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) like institutions, six would be ready within the next two years, adding that it would reduce the burden on Delhi's hospitals.

The Central Government has given its nod to the establishment of eight All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) like institutions with super-speciality facilities in Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Rajasthan, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

On asked if the newly built hospitals would be equipped with the newly developed Nano-sensor technology, Azad said, "There is no proposal with the Ministry to equip hospitals with Nano- sensor devices for diagnosis of heart diseases." (ANI)