The government has announced that all 380 million workers of unorganized sector workers may get treatment at Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC)-run healthcare facilities. The workforce in this sector is of home-based worker, self-employed worker, or wage worker who is not a member of the ESIC or the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). The government has identified this workforce by registering them in the e-shram portal.
The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has instructed the ESIC to execute a plan by using its reserve fund of Rs 1-trillion which is lying mostly in fixed-income instruments with the banks. Further, these funds will be used to improve its medical infrastructure and expand its reach to all 740 districts of the country.
Currently, the ESIC offers its healthcare facilities to its members or insured persons (IPs), and members of their families (beneficiaries), through a vast network of 160 ESI hospitals including 1,517 dispensaries, 8 medical colleges, 2 dental colleges, and 76 dispensaries-cum-branch offices. Also, in 157 districts where ESI hospitals have been not set up, it has collaborated with Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) and ESIC bears the entire expenditure for the medical treatment of such ESI beneficiaries.
