The Andhra Pradesh State government recently announced a significant expansion of its public healthcare offerings, adding 155 new services to government hospitals under its revised health policy. This exciting development, revealed in a Health Department press note on Monday, September 15, now brings the total number of treatments available to patients to an impressive 324. Among the newly included services are common procedures like hysterectomy, appendectomy, and various ENT treatments, making essential care more accessible than ever before.
Beyond these additions, the Dr. NTR Vaidya Seva scheme will continue to provide 197 highly specialized and rarely utilized medical services completely free of charge. These unique procedures encompass complex interventions such as thymus gland removal and excision of the duodenum (the first section of the small intestine), ensuring even the most uncommon conditions receive crucial attention.
Health, Medical Education, and Family Welfare Minister Satya Kumar Yadav led a review of the scheme’s services, emphasizing the need for reorganization under the new policy. During the discussion, officials highlighted how the previous administration had overinflated the total number of services by listing similar treatments with identical package values separately. This practice led to an artificial count of 3,257 services.
The new policy directly addresses this inefficiency by consolidating similar services into broader, more logical categories, effectively reducing the service count by 186. For instance, treatments for dengue, typhoid, and paratyphoid fevers—all involving comparable medical procedures—were previously listed individually but are now intelligently grouped under a single ‘Fevers’ category. Following recommendations from a dedicated team of medical professionals, 319 such similar services have been reorganized into 133 streamlined categories. With 324 services now exclusively handled by government hospitals and 197 rare services continuing to be offered free, the remaining 2,736 services have been refined into 2,550 categories. Payments for these 2,550 streamlined services will be managed directly through the insurance company chosen to implement the innovative new scheme.
The financial implications of this restructuring are significant. The premium payable to the insurance company is directly influenced by the number of services covered, as a higher count typically increases costs associated with pre-authorization and administrative processes. By reorganizing services into these broader, more efficient categories, the government anticipates a substantial reduction in these overhead expenses, ultimately leading to a more cost-effective and sustainable healthcare system.