What is the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi scheme?

National governments and state subjects may set up schemes to assist the people or regions they administer. This may improve their quality of life for them. Several health-related schemes have been started to help people to access good quality and timely medical care. Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi has also initiated such a scheme. The scheme assists people who are considered BPL or fall below the poverty line or are slightly above it and are considered APL or Above The Poverty Line. It covers the medical costs that these groups may incur. Covering their medical costs aims to elevate the concerned groups and foster development in the country. 

Kerala Government health insurance card 

Persons who have successfully taken up a scheme in India may have to use a card to show they are a beneficiary. The Kerala Government health insurance card is important for all the scheme beneficiaries. Eligible persons who opted for the KASP or Karunya insurance may be given a Kerala Government health insurance card. The Kerala Government health insurance card will be necessary for availing the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi benefits, validating one’s identity, and receiving the required treatments through the scheme. The Kerala Government health insurance card will be submitted to network hospitals and other documents to avail of the necessary cashless treatment. 

What are the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi benefits? 

Karunya arogya suraksha padhathi

KASP insurance or Karunya insurance may afford a cashless cover of INR 5,00,000 to each eligible family per annul for secondary and tertiary care conditions that have been listed. The medical cover offered to the beneficiaries is to improve their access to healthcare and simultaneously improve their quality of life, the standard of living and create progress in the country by assisting those most in need. 

The following expenses that the beneficiaries may incur are covered under the KASP insurance:

• Medical examination, treatment, and consultation

• Pre-hospitalization expenses 

• Expenses related to medicine and medical consumables that a beneficiary may have to take

• Services that are considered intensive and non-intensive 

• Diagnostic and laboratory investigations that the beneficiaries may need to pay for 

• Some kinds of medical implantation services 

• Benefits related to accommodation 

• Expenses that are related to complications that may occur during the treatment of the beneficiary

• Follow-up care that may be done after the beneficiaries hospitalization for up to 15 days

The benefits of INR 5,00,000 are provided to beneficiaries of KSAP insurance or Karunya health scheme on a family floater basis. The term’ family floater’ means that one or all family members may avail of the scheme’s benefits. No limit exists to how many family members can benefit from the KASP insurance. Additionally, pre-existing diseases that a person may suffer from are covered from the first day of becoming a beneficiary of the scheme. This means if an eligible person has any medical condition before being covered by KASP insurance or the Karunya health scheme, they can avail of medical assistance from the first day they become a beneficiary of the Karunya insurance.

What are the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi eligibility criteria? 

Different schemes have different eligibility criteria depending on the benefits it offers or the focus group of that particular scheme. The Arogya Insurance Kerala also has some criteria people must meet to take it up. 

Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi eligibility criteria are:

  1. The person must be a resident of Kerala
  2. To enrol for Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi, the applicant must produce their Aadhar card and income certificate along with a few other documents
  3. The scheme applies to people that are considered BPL or fall below the poverty line or are slightly above it and are considered APL or Above The Poverty Line
  4. Families that belong to BPL and APL categories may apply for the KASP insurance if their family income is lower than INR 3 lakhs per annum

To know more about Karunya Aogya Suraksha Padhathi eligibility criteria, one may search about the same online on any search engine or approach an empanelled hospital that comes under the scheme. 

Important features of the KASP insurance 

KASP Insurance, or Arogya Insurance Kerala, has some important features that will serve the scheme’s beneficiaries and benefit from these features. These features are important to the beneficiaries who belong to the sects of the population that may require them.

Important features of the KASP insurance are:

  1. Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi is a scheme that the government fully finances
  2. The Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi provides a cover of INR 5 lakhs for every family per year for hospitalization, wherein the patient would require secondary and tertiary care across public or private hospitals 
  3. Through the KASP insurance, a person may avail of cash benefits and be afforded necessary healthcare services
  4. KASP insurance assists in avoiding catastrophic expenditures that its beneficiaries may have to undergo when receiving necessary medical treatment
  5.  3 days of pre-hospitalization as well as hospital expenses that may be incurred 15 days after the person’s hospitalization 
  6. There are no limits or restrictions relating to family size, age, or gender
  7. All pre-existing conditions of beneficiaries are covered from the first day that they become a beneficiary of the scheme
  8. Beneficiaries may avail of 1,573 procedures with costs related to the same covered, including but not limited to drugs, supplies, diagnostic services, physician’s fees, room charges, surgeon charges, OT and ICU charges, among others 
  9. Public hospitals may be reimbursed for healthcare services that have been provided to beneficiaries at par with private hospitals

What are some of the illnesses that the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi covers?

The Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi scheme or Karunya health insurance is primarily for patients suffering from critical illnesses and meets the Karunya arogya Suraksha padhathi eligibility criteria. The scheme covers several medical costs that they may incur during their treatment. It hence plays a huge role in these treatments that beneficiaries may be suffering from because, without the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi, they would not be able to be afforded these medical services that are necessary for them. 

Illnesses that the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi covers are: 

  • Cancer 
  • Haemophilia
  • Kidney diseases
  • Heart diseases
  • Palliative Care
  • Brain surgery
  • Liver surgery
  • Transplant surgeries
  • Acute respiratory illness

A beneficiary may be able to receive medical assistance for any of these critical illnesses at any empanelled hospital under the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi. On visiting or contacting any of these empanelled hospitals, a person may also be able to understand more about the facilities that may be available for their treatment and which empanelled hospital may be the most suitable for them to receive the necessary treatment for their critical health issue.  

How to register for Karunya Health Insurance?

No scheme is availed without properly registering for it. It is imperative to understand all necessary processes, documents, and other things a person must do to become a beneficiary of a scheme they are eligible for. A person may want to register for Karunya Insurance. To do so, a person must follow the necessary process and provide all the details they may be required to share.

One may register for Karunya Health Insurance in the following way:

  1. Visit the official portal for the scheme at http://karunya.kerala.gov.in 
  2. Click on the section “How to Apply” from the home page
  3. Download the necessary application form from the website
  4. Input all the details and submit the same along with the required documents

One may find out their registration status conveniently from the website. To do so, the person shall click the Application Tracking button. A reference number or file number may need to be provided by the person along with a Captcha. Another way to check if the registration for the scheme has been made or the application has been accepted is to visit the link, which contains the list of beneficiaries of Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi. Both options are available on the home page and are easily accessible.

Is there an offline application process for the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi?

No, there is no offline process to apply for the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi. A person must download the application form available on the website of the Government of Kerala and complete the required process online. 

Where can I find the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi hospital list?

A person may access the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi hospital list online. This list is available on the Government of Kerala’s Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi (KASP) website.

Documents Needed for Applying for the Scheme

To apply for the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi scheme in Kerala, a person needs to present certain documents. These documents are necessary for a person’s application to be accepted, and they will be able to avail of the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi benefits.

The documents that one must produce to apply for the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi are:

  1. Certificate of income – this will serve as proof of the person’s employment 
  2. Aadhar card – will confirm important details of the person
  3. Identity proof – will be required to show that a person is real and validate their identity 
  4. BPL (Below the Poverty Line) Card – will indicate that a person is considered as Below The Poverty Line or BPL by the authorities 
  5. Proof of residence – this will show that the person lives in the state of Kerala and give details of where they live 
  6. Ration card – Will be used to confirm certain details 
  7. A photograph that is passport sized – To check the physical identity of the person 
  8. Estimation of expenses that will be incurred at the hospital – This will be to estimate what the claim made by the person will be in relation to their hospital expenses. 

All of the above must be submitted along with the application form of the person that wants to benefit from the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi scheme.

The State Lotteries Department (Taxes) manages the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi scheme. The Kerala Lottery does the funding for the scheme. The amount used to provide settlement for the hospitals empanelled under the Arogya Insurance Kerala. 

Conclusion

One may benefit from being well-versed with and understanding a scheme as far as possible before availing it or becoming a beneficiary. This will allow a person to know beforehand if the scheme is right for them. It also makes availing of the scheme’s benefits much smoother, especially when it is a health-related scheme like Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi. The doctor or medical professional may also find giving treatments offered through the scheme much easier if the patient is well-informed about it. The Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi has proven to be a boon for people in need in the state of Kerala, offering important benefits that will help them live better lives and access good quality medical assistance with ease, proving to be an important and necessary scheme. If you need financial support for your needs and treatment, Impact Guru can help you with raising money through online crowdfunding.