By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, June 14, 2018: The Odisha government on Thursday announced to skip the Centre’s Ayushman Bharat National Health Protection Mission in the state.

“There is no need to join the central government’s Ayushman Bharat programme after launching state’s own health assurance scheme,” state health and family welfare minister Pratap Jena said adding that Odisha’s Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana would be implemented from August 15 this year.

While the Centre’s Ayushman Bharat programme was meant for 61 lakh families of Odisha, the state’s own Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana will cover 70 lakh families, Jena claimed.

Around 3.5 crore people will get health benefit up to Rs 5 lakh per family under the state scheme, he said.

“Keeping in view the interests of the people of our state, we are going to implement the Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana,” Jena said, adding that the healthcare scheme of the state government is much superior to that of the Centre.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had on Tuesday announced the health assurance scheme of the state. Under the programme, a family would get up to Rs 5 lakh per annum to meet healthcare expenditure at all government-run hospitals and the entire cost would be borne by the state government.