TAXILA: Every family in Punjab will have access to free medical treatment through the health card by the end of March, Minister for Specialised Healthcare and Medical Education Dr Yasmin Rashid said on Friday.

She was talking to journalists after reviewing the under-construction Mother and Child Hospital in Attock. Minister for Social Welfare and Baitul Maal Syed Yawar Abbas Bukhari was also present.

The hospital is expected to be completed at a cost of Rs5 million on 75 kanals of land during the current fiscal year.

Dr Rashid said 110 million people of the 36 districts of Punjab would benefit from the health card, adding that the government was also planning to introduce outdoor services through the health card besides the already provided indoor facilities.

Mother and Child Hospital in Attock expected to be completed in current fiscal year

She said almost 98pc people had expressed satisfaction with the services provided through health cards. More than 60,000 people have so far been treated through the cards, 97,000 people had received free eye treatment while 850 heart procedures have been conducted.

For the first time in the history of Punjab, the government’s focus is on improving facilities in rural areas, she said, adding that Rs400 billion was expected to be spent on the universal health insurance programme.

She said Prime Minister Imran Khan’s dream of providing the best healthcare facilities to the people had been realised through the scheme, adding that 23 new hospitals were being built with upgraded health facilities.

“The incumbent government has increased the budget of the health sector 200 times as compared to its predecessor,” she said, announcing that eight hospitals for mothers and children were being set up in remote areas of Punjab.

More than 158 hospitals have been upgraded, 78 new health facilities have been built and the day is not far when the prime minister’s vision of extending the best health facilities to people would be fulfilled, the minister added.

Dr Rashid said 48,000 health professionals, including doctors and nurses, were hired during the last three years by the government and more than 33,000 vacant posts in the health sector would be filled during the current fiscal year.

She said 222 basic health units were operating across the province while 1,400 others had been made for safe birth deliveries.

The minister said an outreach programme would be launched soon to ensure better healthcare facilities for the people of Mianwali, Attock and Chakwal.

Published in Dawn, February 19th, 2022