Tamil Nadu’s big health push: Insurance cover raised from ₹5 lakh to ₹25 lakh

Tamil Nadu has announced a major expansion of welfare measures, increasing health insurance cover under the Chief Minister's Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme from ₹5 lakh to ₹25 lakh and extending maternity leave for women government employees having a third child to 365 days, according to a report by PTI.

Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay announced the five-fold increase in health insurance cover on Wednesday as part of a series of measures to improve healthcare access in the state.

Vijay said access to medical treatment should be treated as a fundamental right and not a privilege. He said the government was working to remove barriers to quality healthcare so that people can get treatment regardless of their income or where they live.

The higher insurance cover is part of the state's wider plans to improve healthcare services and medical infrastructure.

Don't Miss: New cars, ₹75,000 monthly driver allowance: Tamil Nadu CM Vijay's big announcements for MLAs

Vijay also announced official vehicles and a monthly allowance for MLAs to help them address public complaints in their constituencies. Making the announcement under Rule 110 in the Assembly, he said the measures would help MLAs travel across their constituencies, meet people, address their complaints and monitor government projects without depending on others.

The announcements came a day after the state government changed its maternity leave rules for women employees.

Maternity leave for the birth of a third child will now be increased from 12 weeks to 365 days. This brings it in line with the leave given for the first two children.

At present, married women government employees with fewer than two surviving children are entitled to 365 days of maternity leave. Those with two or more surviving children are entitled to up to 12 weeks of leave.

Must Read: Indian Green Card applicants to face tougher test soon: USCIS scraps Biden-era public charge rules from Sept 18 

During the demand for grants to his department, Minister for Human Resources Management, D Sarathkumar told the state Assembly, "Under these circumstances, as the Tamil Nadu government is a welfare-oriented administration prioritising social welfare and women's empowerment, the maternity leave currently provided for the third child of female government employees will be enhanced from 12 weeks to 365 days".

The maternity leave period has been increased in stages over the years. The original 90 days of leave was increased to six months in 2011, nine months in 2016, and then to one year (365 days) in July 2021 by the respective state governments led by the AIADMK and the DMK.