Formulate policy for universal medical care: Cong MP

A demand to formulate a policy for universal medical care was made in the Rajya Sabha today as serious concern was voiced over rising cases of malaria, dengue and chikungunya in several states.
Ram Chandra Khuntia (Cong) said during Zero Hour that these diseases have created panic in Delhi, Odisha, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal.
He said Odisha topped the list in malaria cases with 89,466 affected persons followed by Chhattisgarh with 31,960 persons, Jharkhand with 26,489 persons and Maharashtra with 17,060 persons.
He said a total of 2.63 lakh people were affected in the country and 78 deaths have taken place this year which includes 20 deaths in Odisha and 24 deaths in Maharashtra.

Khuntia said Kerala is number one in dengue cases with 5,947 affected persons followed by Karnataka with 4,039 persons, Tamil Nadu with 3,069 persons and Maharashtra with 965 persons. While 19 people died in Karnataka, 11 lives were lost in Delhi.
"Total deaths are 59 and total affected persons are 16,693," he said.

The Congress member said Andhra Pradesh had the highest number of 6,996 Chikungunya affected cases.
He said special financial assistance for total eradication of dengue, malaria, chikungunya and black fever should be provided to the affected states.
"The treatment has become very costly. Government hospitals are not capable of providing free treatment...There should be compulsory mediclaim insurance for all," he added.