A Broken Promise: The Reality of Health Cover in West Bengal


A Broken Promise: The Reality of Health Cover in West Bengal

There is a huge problem right now in West Bengal regarding health insurance for ordinary people, and my family has suffered because of it.

Twhe central government in India runs a major health scheme called Ayushman Bharat, which offers insurance to citizens. However, the West Bengal state government has refused to implement it. Instead, they introduced their own scheme, the Swasthya Sathi Card.

The biggest issue with the Swasthya Sathi Card is how poorly it is accepted by private hospitals. In most cases, patients are simply turned away. Although the government constantly promises to take strict action against any hospital that denies the card, in reality, nothing ever seems to change.

I saw this corruption first-hand when my mother-in-law fell ill.

On April 26th, 2024, we rushed her to the Rittik Nursing Home in Kolkata. Initially, they agreed to accept her Swasthya Sathi card. But as soon as she was admitted, everything changed. The hospital staff told us they would only cover the cost of the bed using the card. For every other medical charge, they demanded payment in cash—and, alarmingly, they refused to provide any official bill or receipt for the cash payments.

Given her critical health condition, we were completely trapped. We had no choice but to agree to their unfair and dishonest terms. We ended up paying around ₹70,000 in cash.

What makes this even worse is the hospital's clear fraud. I contacted the government's own Health Department via their WhatsApp helpline and explained the entire situation, including the illegal cash demand and the lack of receipts. Despite my clear warnings, the Health Department went ahead and reimbursed the full amount to Rittik Nursing Home. This suggests to me that the hospital and certain government officials are working together in this corrupt practice.

Because the hospital refused to give us any formal proof or receipts for the cash we paid, I had no evidence to take to the higher authorities. This widespread corruption is cheating ordinary, vulnerable people right across West Bengal.


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