The Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party government in New Delhi has green-lit a new policy to provide free medical aid to 'accident' victims. The policy, which seems to have been in the pipeline for a while, makes provisions for all victims of road accidents, fire, and acid attacks to be treated free of cost at the nearest private hospital. It was approved at a Cabinet meeting. The government is expected to bear the expense.
Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain made the announcement of this scheme at a press conference in the capital, chaired by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, on 12 December. The party corroborated the same on its official Twitter account.
It will now be sent to Delhi Lt Governor Anil Baijal for his approval.
Jain added that free treatment will be provided to the accident victim irrespective of whether they are from Delhi or not.
If any citizen is in an accident on the streets of Delhi, the whole cost of treatment will be borne by the Delhi government. The first priority is to save the life of the person.Satyendra Jain, Health Minister, Delhi
"The move is aimed at saving lives of such people during the golden hour after accidents on Delhi's roads, be it road accident, fire and acid attacks," Jain told reporters in New Delhi.
Most people attempt to take road accident victims to a government hospital even if a private hospital is nearby, thereby denying treatment within the ‘Golden Hour’.
After the approval of the scheme by the Cabinet, Kejriwal said, "Every life counts. Every life is important for us. If an accident victim receives best medical care immediately, many lives cud be saved (sic)."
Giving details about the scheme, Jain said the Cabinet has approved the scheme for victims of three types of accidents – motor accidents, acid attacks and fire incidents.
The health minister said that the Delhi government would bear the treatment cost of such people in both its own and private hospitals.
Jain claimed that 8,000 accidents occur on Delhi roads every year, affecting 15,000-20,000 people, and about 1,600 people die every year due to road accidents.
This follows soon after the AAP government announced that it is set to launch a scheme to provide Rs 2,000 as reward to those who help road accident victims reach hospitals.
The Delhi government had unveiled the ‘Good Samaritan’ policy in January 2017 to reward people who helped road accident victims. The ‘Good Samaritans’ will also be given appreciation certificates, Jain had said at a conference in Hyderabad in November.
The proposal for the scheme, that had been in the works even earlier, was mooted by the AAP government in August 2016 after a road accident victim in west Delhi's Subhash Nagar bled to death because no one helped him.
(With inputs from IANS.)
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