Jalandhar, January 12, 2020 (Yes Punjab News)
To ensure the availability of all medicines to the poor people on cheaper rates, Punjab Health and Family Welfare Minister Mr Balbir Singh Sidhu on Sunday said that the prices of the medicines must be fixed on the salt not the brand of the medicines.
Presiding over the annual conference of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) Punjab, Mr Sidhu said that he had recently met the higher officials of Chemical and Fertilizers Ministry and said that it will bring uniformity in the prices of the medicines and will benefit the all the people.
Mr Sidhu said that Punjab Government led by Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh is committed to providing best healthcare facilities to the people and it will also persuade the issue with the union government to fix the prices of the medicines on the basis of salt.
The Health and Family Welfare Minister also sought cooperation from the doctor fraternity to prescribe the medicines on the basis of the salt to the patients.
He also solicited the support of the Indian Medical Association to join the hands with the government for making Punjab a healthy state by empanelling the hospitals under Ayushman Bharat-Sarbat Sehat Beema Yojna and holding medical camps for the poor people.
The Minister disclosed that 470 hospitals of the state have been empanelled and 1.05 lakh people have got treatment under the scheme besides the payments to the hospitals have also been cleared within one month.
The Minister said that the state government is opening around 3000 Health and Wellness centres (HWC) by upgrading sub-centres where the trained nursing officers will work as Community Health Officers and provide best health facilities to all.
He said that since ages, the Medical profession has been considered a very pious profession and the all must uphold this dignity. He also urged the doctors for doing more for the needy and underprivileged sections of the society. The Minister also assured the IMA that the issues regarding the clinical establishment Act and a committee has also been constituted in this regard.
He also announced Rs five lakh for IMA and congratulated Dr Navjot Dahiya who became the new president of IMA Punjab today.
The Minister also distributed the awards to the members of IMA during the conference. The Minister also met the MBBS students and asked them to work zealously for serving the state at first rather than going to other places.
On the occasion, Mayor Mr Jagdish Raj Raja, Civil Surgeon Dr Gurinder Kaur Chawla, medical superintendent Dr Mandeep Kaur Mangat, PMC president Dr A S Sekhon, IMA members Dr Yogeshwar Sood, Dr Harish Bhardwaj and others were present.
