The pandemic has really taught governments worldwide an important lesson – the significance of healthcare. With the onset of the pandemic, several economies all over the world came to a standstill just because of the oversight laid on healthcare and maintaining medical infrastructure.

The West Bengal government intends to learn from it by launching the Swasthya Sathi Scheme 2021 so that it can cover the entire population of West Bengal.

The Swasthya Sathi Scheme 2021 will enroll 7.5 crores of people under the Cashless Health scheme of the West Bengal State. As per the announcement made by the CM of West Bengal, each and every family will be covered under the benefits of the Swasthya Sathi Scheme 2021.

To add to it, the Swasthya Sathi Scheme 2021 will be funded 100% by the State government and the implementation of the scheme will be in effect from the 1st of December 2020 itself.

Objective of the scheme

The main objective of the scheme is to help the residents of West Bengal to issue cashless treatments. Earlier, a similar version of the scheme was launched but it primarily covered all of the secondary and tertiary care of up to ₹5 lakh per annum per family. However, with the announcement of the new scheme, it has been expanded to cover all the residents of West Bengal irrespective of their economic or backward society status.

There will be a health card issued to the people of West Bengal and would be distributed among the women of the families from the 1st of December 2020.

Eligibility criteria for the scheme

  1. The applicant must be a permanent resident of West Bengal.
  2. The smart card will be issued to the women members of the family.
  3. The applicant must not be enrolled under any other health care scheme issued by the government.

Procedure to apply online under the Swasthya Sathi Scheme

  1. First of all, the applicant has to visit the official website of the Swasthya Sathi scheme.
  2. The homepage will load on the desktop.
  3. Click on “Apply online”.
  4. There will be a new page where the applicant would have to enter details
  5. The applicant would then have to attach the documents needed to go with the application.

This is the procedure to apply for the Swastha Sathi scheme in West Bengal.

Documents needed to apply for the scheme

  1. The applicant must produce his/her legal domicile documents.
  2. The applicants must furnish their BPL certificates.
  3. The SHG and the medical organization’s registration certificate is necessary.
  4. The applicant needs to submit an authorized document that has been issued officially by the government of West Bengal.

In Conclusion

This year, healthcare is the topmost priority for most governments, and that comes as no surprise. With advancements as such on behalf of the governments, people will now have more options and more incentive to consider healthcare insurance for themselves and their families.

In the long run, this will make matters a whole lot easier and the people will rest assured, knowing that their governments care for their healths at all times.