Finally doctors, nurses getting health insurance beside cash compensation
DOT Desk:[2]The government is going to introduce separate health insurance for doctors, nurses and technicians engaged in the treatment of patients infected with the coronavirus, reports The Business Standard.
[3]If a doctor dies while treating Covid-19 patients, his/her family will get insurance benefits of Tk10 lakh in addition to cash compensation. For nurses and technicians, the insurance benefit is of Tk5 lakh. State-owned Jiban Bima Corporation will introduce the insurance.
[4] On April 7 last, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced a special insurance as a reward for government officials and employees, including doctors, nurses and technicians, who are risking their lives to provide healthcare amid the coronavirus pandemic.
[5]After that, the Jiban Bima Corporation took up an initiative of health insurance for doctors, nurses and technicians, but the finance ministry and the health ministry did not agree to it.
[6] On April 23, the finance ministry issued a circular, stating that the frontline fighters infected with the coronavirus would be given cash compensation, in lieu of insurance benefits, ranging from Tk5-10 lakh.
It also stated that, in case of death from Covid-19, each family of the health fighters would get Tk25-50 lakh based on their grades.
For that purpose, the health ministry asked for an allocation of Tk750 crore in the upcoming budget for 2020-21. It also sought Tk100 crore from the government for the same reason in the current financial year.
But apart from the initiative of cash compensation, the government has finalised the introduction of health insurance for doctors, nurses and technicians, said Shibli Rubayat Ul Islam, chairman of the Jiban Bima Corporation.
He also said the Jiban Bima Corporation was working on the insurance announced by the prime minister. Later, the government decided to provide cash compensation instead of insurance benefits to frontline fighters.
“We, the Jiban Bima Corporation, have finalised everything on our own to give insurance coverage to doctors, nurses and technicians of government hospitals who are involved only in treating coronavirus patients. The board meeting has also approved it.”