If Ayushman Bharat so good, why people from UP, Haryana coming to Delhi for treatment: Jain

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain Thursday took a fresh dig at the Centre over its health insurance programme Ayushman Bharat, saying if the scheme is so good why people from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh are "forced" to seek treatment in government hospitals here.

His comments came days after Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan wrote to the chief ministers of Delhi, Odisha, Telangana and West Bengal, urging them to join the Centre's flagship health insurance scheme.

"If Ayushman Bharat is so good then why patients from BJP-ruled states of Haryana and UP are not treated through this scheme. Why they are forced to come to Delhi Govt Hospitals for treatment," Jain tweeted.

Vardhan had said that the ultimate beneficiary of this collaboration would be the poor and vulnerable people of the country.

"This scheme (Ayushman Bharat) entails so many conditions, and is discriminatory... Why only a few should avail it, it should be universal. And, this scheme is merely rhetoric ('jumla')... People from UP and Haryana, where this scheme is there, are coming to get treated at Delhi government hospitals," Jain told reporters.

Jain on Tuesday had said the AAP government would not implement Ayushman Bharat scheme in the national capital as the Arvind Kejriwal dispensation seeks to provide equitable treatment to all residents here.

"They are not worried about the poor of UP... 70 per cent of patients coming to this hospital are from Uttar Pradesh," he had said after inspecting GTB Hospital in east Delhi.