Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) is a scheme for providing healthcare to the serving as well as the retired Central Government Employees and their family members. CGHS is functioning under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) and the officers of the Central Health Service (CHS) provide healthcare to the beneficiaries and handles the administration of the wellness centres located throughout

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. The Central Government Employees not residing in CGHS covered cities are entitled to medical care under Central Services (Medical Attendance) Rules.

History

Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) was established on 1 July 1954. It was initially introduced in Delhi as the Contributory Health Service Scheme (CHSS) under the administrative control of the Directorate General of Health Services. Report of the Contributory Health Service Scheme Assessment Committee, 1962 Initially there were 16 Dispensaries catering to 53,000 Government Employees and a total of 2,23,000 beneficiaries. Prior to CGHS, employees had to claim reimbursement of medical expenditure under Central Services (Medical Attendance) Rules. CGHS was introduced to provide a more comprehensive healthcare to the Central Government Employees and to make the system more efficiente. The scheme was later extended to several other categories of officials, such as members of parliament, supreme court judges, etc. Over the years, CGHS wellness centres were expanded to cover more and more cities throughout India.

Organogram

Beneficiaries

Central Government Employees, serving as well as retired, and their family members are eligible for CGHS benefits. The serving employees should be residing in a CGHS covered city to be eligible to subscribe to CGHS scheme. For pensioners, this is not necessary. At the time of retirement, the pensioner can choose to avail either CGHS benefits or the Fixed Medical Allowance (FMA). CGHS also have several other categories of beneficiaries, which were added over the years, such as Members of Parliament, Judges of Supreme Court and High Courts, employees of certain autonomous organisations covered under the scheme, Railway Board employees, etc.https://chti.rajbhasha.gov.in/pdf/faq2.pdf

Subscription

A subscription amount is deducted from the Pay of the Central Government Employee every month for coverage under CGHS scheme. For Pensioners, either monthly payment or a one-time lifetime payment of subscription can be chosen at the time of retirement.

CGHS Covered Cities

Currently CGHS wellness centres are functioning in 80 cities all over India.

Functioning of the Wellness Centres

The Wellness Centres are headed by Chief Medical Officer (CMO) in-charge and functions from Monday to Saturday 7:30 AM to 2:00 PM. The staff pattern is as per Staff Inspection Unit (SIU) norms based on workload, and a Medical Officer is expected to attend to 75 patients in 6 hours.

Human Resource

The Medical Officers are recruited by the CHS Division of the

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) is an Government of India, Indian government Ministry (government department), ministry charged with health policy in India. It is also responsible for all government programs relating to family ...

through UPSC Combined Medical Services Examination. Recruitment to other posts are through an "Integrated Recruitment System" where the CGHS organisation is divided into 9 zones in conformation with the regional offices of the

Staff Selection Commission Staff Selection Commission (SSC) is an organisation under the Government of India to recruit staff for various posts in the various ministries and departments of the government of India and in subordinate offices and agencies. This commission ...

Services and Benefits

Through the wellness centres located at several cities across India, the beneficiaries can avail medical consultations and are provided medicines free of cost. Total number of beneficiaries are 47.44 lakhs. The beneficiaries requiring expert evaluation and hospitalisation are referred to hospitals known as Healthcare Organizations (HCOs) empaneled under CGHS. A total of 2486 private hospitals and diagnostic centres are empanelled under CGHS. In addition to Modern Medicine, the beneficiaries can also avail healthcare under Indian Systems of Medicine, such as Ayurveda, Unani, Sidha, Yoga and also Homeopathy.https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/pvt-hosps-not-keen-on-empanelling-under-central-govt-health-scheme/articleshow/81382908.cms Serving employees of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Pensioners, Members of Parliament, etc., are eligible for cashless treatment at the empaneled hospitals.

Challenges and Reforms

The Department-Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare noted in its report that a significant number of posts are vacant in CGHS Organisation to the tune of 2,023 positions (28.81% of sanctioned strength) and may lead to an undesirable doctor to beneficiaries ratio, increased patient waiting time and reduced quality of care. The Committee also noted that around 26% of the Wellness Centres are located in Delhi NCR region and the uneven distribution of these wellness centres throught the nation restricts the accessibility of the beneficiaries to CGHS Services.

References

{{reflist Ministry of Health and Family Welfare