Government renews INR 50 lakh health insurance scheme after facing criticism for withdrawing it

COVID-19: The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on April 21st announced the extension of the INR 50 lakh health insurance scheme for healthcare and frontline workers who succumb in the line of COVID-19 duty, for another year with immediate effect.

The scheme which was closed on March 24th 2021, is now being renewed by the government following criticism from various quarters. 

In a letter written to the deputy general manager of New India Assurance Company Limited (NIACL), the health ministry directed the insurance company to resume the scheme with immediate effect and sought the release of funds as soon as possible.

The health insurance scheme, which comes under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP), was launched to provide a safety net to healthcare and frontline workers engaged in the fight against COVID-19. It was implemented through an insurance policy purchased from NIACL.

However, it was concluded on March 24th, 2021. Health secretary Rajesh Bhushan, had written a letter to all the states announcing the closure of the scheme. The letter clarified that all claims submitted as of midnight on March 24th, 2021 would be eligible for coverage under the scheme. Furthermore, an additional one-month window would be provided for the submission of all documents to the insurance company, in case of eligible claims. As on that day, only 287 claims had been processed.

The announcement was met with a lot of criticism following which the health ministry issued a tweet on April 18th saying that they are considering a new scheme and are in talks with NIACL. On April 19th, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) had written to the health ministry seeking an extension of the insurance scheme for healthcare workers.

Read this article on the need to reinforce social welfare schemes to withstand crises such as COVID-19.

Fundraising & Communications: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has issued a circular extending the validity of FCRA registration certificates to September 30th, 2021. This applies to all FCRA licences that have expired or will expire between September 29th, 2020 and May 31st, 2021. The decision to extend the deadline has been driven by the exigencies arising from the COVID-19 situation.

FCRA refers to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act 2010, which permits charitable organisations based in India to raise funds from foreign sources.

The order also clarified that nonprofits that have already opened an account and have the requisite permission to receive foreign aid, can henceforth receive it only in these newly-opened accounts.

The FCRA law was amended in September 2020 to include a clause that mandated that all nonprofits receiving foreign aid must necessarily open an account in State Bank of India’s New Delhi Main Branch. The government had initially set the deadline for this account opening as March 31st, 2021; it later extended it to June 30th, 2021 after several nonprofits argued in court that there had been delays because necessary approvals from MHA had not been received.

Several organisations have not been able to receive foreign funds during the crisis caused by the second wave, and this has impacted their COVID-19 relief efforts. Relaxing the foreign funding rules could significantly help organisations ramp up their operations to help individuals, supply critical healthcare equipment, and respond to communities in rural areas.

Read this article to know how amending the FCRA can have unforeseen implications.

Philanthropy & CSR: The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has issued a circular that allows corporate spending on health infrastructure for COVID-19 care to qualify as corporate social responsibility (CSR) expenditure.

This includes setting up medical oxygen generation and storage plants, manufacturing and supply of oxygen concentrators, ventilators, cylinders, and other medical equipment to counter COVID-19.  

The announcement comes at a time when all efforts are being directed towards expediting efforts to support the country’s healthcare infrastructure.

According to the circular, companies can now undertake projects and activities in collaboration with other companies using CSR funds. Additionally, they can contribute to specified research and development projects, as well as publicly funded universities and certain organisations that conduct research in science, technology, engineering, and medicine.

The government had earlier clarified that setting up makeshift hospitals and temporary COVID-19 care facilities would also be considered a CSR activity. Rajesh Verma, the Corporate Affairs Secretary, has requested businesses to consider converting vacant office buildings into COVID-19 facilities to cater to the rapidly increasing caseload.

Read this article to understand why media attention on COVID-19 deaths due to lack of oxygen in big cities has skewed donor priorities.