Universal Health Scheme a sham, alleges APCC president Y. S. Sharmila

APCC president Y.S. Sharmila on Sunday alleged that the State government’s claim on the Universal Health Scheme to provide free insurance to about 5 crore people was a sham.

“The claim of ₹2.5 lakh health insurance is a blatant fraud. This is a conspiracy to kill Aarogyasri,” she posted on X. She accused the TDP-led coalition government of preparing the ground for privatising the health scheme.

Ms. Sharmila argued that private insurance would bring burden and not benefit, and accused Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu of derailing the Aarogyasri scheme, which, she said, was the lifeline of the poor.

“When the government is unwilling to allocate ₹4,000 crore annually towards Aarogyasri payments, where will it find thousands of crores to pay in advance to the insurance companies, what does ₹2.5 lakh insurance coverage mean, and why should expenses beyond that be paid by the NTR Vaidya Seva Trust?” she questioned.

The APCC chief pointed out that States that implemented private insurance were shifting back to the government trust model, and demanded that the State government spell out its intent behind introducing private insurance. She said Mr. Naidu should explain what benefit would come from replacing Aarogyasri with private insurance.

“Aarogyasri, a brainchild of former Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, is the life-saving scheme for the poor. The decision to link Aarogyasri with private insurance must be withdrawn immediately,” she demanded. She said the government should run the scheme under the trust model and also demanded immediate release of the pending dues of ₹3,000 crore to hospitals.