Thiruvananthapuram: An additional Rs 300 crore has been allocated for the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi (KASP), Finance Minister K N Balagopal announced. So far, Rs 978.54 crore has been provided for the scheme this financial year, with Rs 679 crore allocated in the budget. The second Pinarayi Vijayan Government has made available nearly Rs 4,267 crore for KASP. In the budget for the next financial year, an allocation of Rs 700 crore has been set aside.

KASP ensures free medical treatment of up to Rs 5 lakh per year for families in need. A total of 41.99 lakh underprivileged and vulnerable families benefit from this scheme. The State Health Agency is responsible for its implementation. The annual premium per family is set at Rs 1,050. The state government fully covers the premium for 18.02 lakh families, while for 23.97 lakh families, the state bears Rs 418.80 of the annual premium, with the remaining portion contributed by the Central Government.

Membership in the scheme is granted regardless of the number of family members or age limits. The benefits apply to all individuals in a family or even to a single member. There are no specific eligibility criteria, and no fee is charged for obtaining membership. The service is entirely free. The scheme is currently available across Kerala in 197 government hospitals, four central government hospitals, and 364 private hospitals. Patients can receive treatment free of cost at any of these selected institutions, whether government or private. The scheme covers the cost of medicines, associated medical supplies, diagnostic tests, doctor’s fees, operation theatre charges, ICU expenses and implant costs.

A total of 1,667 treatment packages across 25 specialities have been included in the scheme. In addition, 89 government-specified treatment packages are available for free. For treatments not covered under these packages, unspecified packages can be utilised.

The scheme also covers pre-hospitalisation expenses for up to three days before admission, as well as the cost of medicines required for up to 15 days post-hospitalisation, as prescribed by doctors.

In addition to KASP, the Karunya Benevolent Fund (KBF) scheme ensures a one-time free treatment benefit of up to Rs 2 lakh for families with an annual income of less than Rs 3 lakh, even if they are not KASP beneficiaries. Patients suffering from kidney-related ailments can avail free treatment of up to Rs 3 lakh. The KBF benefits are available at all hospitals offering KASP services, according to a press release from the Finance Minister’s office.