NHRC asks govt to ensure all elderly prisoners are covered by health insurance scheme

NEW DELHI: The National Human Rights Commission has issued directions to the director general (prisons) of all states and Union Territories to ensure that all eligible prisoners of 70 years or above should be registered to be able to get the benefit of the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Vaya Vandana Yojana - the govt’s health insurance scheme for senior citizens.

The Ayushman Vaya Vandana Yojana is an initiative to provide free healthcare coverage to senior citizens aged 70 years and above, regardless of their economic status. This scheme comes under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) and provides annual health cover upto Rs 5 lakh.

A bench of the NHRC presided by member Priyank Kanoongo has now directed that the jail authorities must facilitate all the eligible prisoners to enroll them on the portal of the scheme. A letter has been sent out to states on Thursday communicating the directions. An action taken report along with the number of prisoners linked with the scheme has been sought within four weeks.

The directions follow a complaint that was placed before the bench where the issue of making the scheme accessible to the senior citizen prisoners was raised. Noting that this is a “valid issue”, the commission said that going by the spirit of the govt ‘s flagship health insurance scheme it is clear that it does not exclude anyone as long as the person qualifies the eligibility criteria of 70 years or above.

“It is also pertinent to mention here that a person under the custody of the state continues to enjoy the fundamental right to health , and it is the responsibility of the State to ensure proper healthcare for all inmates,” it is stated.

To emphasise its point, the commission highlights the Supreme Court’s assertion in a particular case to say that even the top court had emphasised providing for proper medical aid to inmates as a right under Article 21 of the Constitution. In the communication sent out to states it is cited that the Supreme Court held in that particular case that “it is bounden duty of the state to look after health of the inmates in the jails since they cannot take treatment on their own and for the purpose of treatment, they are at the mercy of the hospital authorities. Proper medical aid to the inmates is a right available to them under Article 21 of the Constitution.