Kathmandu. Kathmandu: Minister for Health and Population, Dr Sudha Gautam, has urged the Ministry of Finance to immediately allocate budget to end the crisis seen in the National Health Insurance Programme.

During a discussion held at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers in the presence of Prime Minister Sushila Karki today, he expressed concern that the hospitals under the health insurance system might be closed if the government did not manage Rs 15 billion immediately.

Minister Gautam urged the Finance Ministry for the management of resources, saying discussion and suggestions alone were not possible to resolve the existing problems and situation. “How can the health insurance program be operated with a liability of Rs 24 billion in zero budget?” asked Minister Gautam. ”

Presenting the budget statement directly to the Finance Minister and Finance Secretary in July, Minister Gautam said that the Ministry was working as per the government’s policy of continuing the health insurance facility for senior citizens, people with disabilities, Dalit, extremely poor and marginalized communities.

Finance Secretary Ghanashyam Upadhyay suggested the Ministry of Health for policy-level reforms and said that the Ministry of Finance was committed to mobilizing required resources. “The Ministry of Health needs to reprioritize the amount to be given for health insurance for immediate management. The Ministry of Finance will provide full support in the matter of transfer of funds. Apart from this, we are ready to transfer the amount to the Ministry of Health on the basis of the need as per the details of the current expenditure of other ministries,” Secretary Upadhyay said.

According to him, health insurance cannot be operated sustainably if the health ministry does not make reform the first agenda and only seeks resources. Secretary Upadhyay said, “The ministry should make the first agenda to solve the problems seen in the programs run by the Ministry of Health, only then improvement is possible.”