Private hospitals call off stir over Aarogyasri dues
Govt to clear Rs 250 cr by Nov 15; all other dues in one go
Amaravati: The 20 day-long strike by private network hospitals empanelled under the Dr NTR Vaidya Seva Trust Scheme ended on Friday, following successful talks between with the Andhra Pradesh Specialty Hospitals Association (ASHA) and the state government, which has agreed to clear all pending dues in one go.
ASHA, representing private hospitals providing NTR Vaidya Seva healthcare services, announced the withdrawal of its agitation and said full medical services would resume immediately.
Earlier during the day, Health Minister Y Satyakumar Yadav held discussions with a delegation of ASHA at the Secretariat. The government, which had earlier released Rs 250 crore and assured another Rs 250 crore, has now agreed to a one-time settlement of all arrears. ASHA president Dr K Vijayakumar said the government would release Rs 250 crore by November 15 as part of the first tranche. “The government has agreed to settle all pending dues at once, paving the way for the full restoration of Aarogyasri services,” he said.
Private hospitals launched the strike since October 10, demanding payment of pending dues totaling around Rs 2,700 crore and revision of operational costs under the state’s flagship health-insurance scheme. The suspension of services had disrupted free treatment for lakhs of patients statewide, with even emergency care being affected.
The breakthrough came after weeks of negotiations between the association and senior officials of the health department. Officials said the one-time settlement was designed to restore trust with empanelled hospitals and ensure uninterrupted service delivery under the NTR Vaidya Seva Trust. ASHA thanked Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Health Minister Satya Yadav, Trust vice-chairman Sudhakar, Principal Secretary -Health, and the CEO of NTR Vaidya Seva Trust for their intervention.
In view of the promise of settlement in one go, Aarogyasri services are set to resume across hundreds of private network hospitals from Saturday, marking a major relief for patients who depend on the scheme for secondary and tertiary care.
