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Health Insurance Programme in Jumla covers 90 thousand people



A local woman picking apples in an apple orchard in Jumla Banjarawala, Tatopani rural municipality-5 in 2022 (File Photo: Shur Bahadur Singh/RSS)

Jumla, April 8: People in Jumla have lately been attracted to the Health Insurance Programme initiated by the government.

Increased awareness regarding the program’s benefits has led to a surge in participation, with a total of 90,411 individuals associating with it, including 45,724 females and 44,687 males, across eight local levels including one municipality.

According to the National Census 2021, the total population of Jumla is 118,349.

According to Chief of the District-based Health Insurance Office, Prem Bhandari, the programme covers 11,648 households in the district in the Karnali Population. The programme was extended to the district in 2074 BS.

Initially, the Jumla folks were not encouraged to be part of the insurance scheme due to a limited understanding of its benefits. Later, insurance agents visited them with comprehensive information about the benefits, and it resulted in a rising number of beneficiaries.

The office is working in coordination with the local levels to implement its efforts to increase the citizens’ access to the programme.

People with disabilities, physically incapacitated, leprosy patients, HIV infected, senior citizens, and disadvantaged households are exempt from paying insurance premiums. The government launched the programme in 2072 BS. #nepal