Modalities being worked out for gig workers' PM-JAY coverage: Expenditure Secretary
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her Budget speech, announced that the government will arrange identity cards and registration of gig workers on the e-Shram portal.
The Finance Ministry, in consultation with the Labour Department, is working out the modalities of a scheme to provide healthcare facilities under the PM Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY) to about 1 crore gig workers, Expenditure Secretary Manoj Govil has said.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her Budget speech, announced that the government will arrange identity cards and registration of gig workers on the e-Shram portal.
"Gig workers of online platforms provide great dynamism to the new-age services economy. Recognising their contribution, our government will arrange for their identity cards and registration on the e-Shram portal," the FM said in the Lok Sabha.
They will be provided healthcare under PM Jan Arogya Yojana.
In an interview with PTI, Govil said the parameters and details of the scheme are being worked out in consultation with the Ministry of Labour and concerned other ministries.
Govil said the social security scheme for gig workers could either be a 100% Central Sector scheme or a centrally sponsored scheme where the cost would be shared between the Centre and states in a 60:40 ratio.
"Once the scheme details are finalised, the cost will be calculated," Govil added.
Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY is the largest health assurance scheme in the world which aims at providing a health cover of Rs 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation to over 12 crore poor and vulnerable families.
It provides cashless healthcare access at empanelled hospitals, covering pre-existing conditions from day one. Designed to prevent catastrophic medical expenses that push nearly 60 million Indians into poverty annually, PM-JAY covers three days of pre-hospitalisation and 15 days of post-hospitalisation costs, including diagnostics and medicines.
The scheme has no restrictions on family size, age, or gender, and its benefits are portable nationwide, allowing beneficiaries to receive treatment at any registered public or private hospital.
Edited by Suman Singh