Centre unveils project for cashless treatment of road crash victims

• The Road Transport and Highways Ministry announced a pilot project to provide cashless treatment of up to ₹1.5 lakh to all victims of road accidents.

Key Highlights

• The pilot project will be undertaken in Chandigarh to establish an “ecosystem for providing timely medical care to the victims of road accidents including during the golden hour
• Victims will be entitled to cashless treatment of up to ₹1.5 lakh per person for a maximum period of seven days from the date of the accident.
• The scheme will be applicable to all victims of road accidents involving a motor vehicle which occurred on any category of road.
• The packages for trauma and polytrauma offered under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana will also be co-opted under the scheme.
• Claims raised by hospitals for providing treatment will be reimbursed from the Motor Vehicle Accident Fund.
• The golden hour is the period following an injury during which there is the highest likelihood of preventing death by providing prompt medical care, according to the Motor Vehicles Amendment Act, 2019.
• The amendment also provided for “a scheme for cashless treatment of road accident victims” as well as a Motor Vehicle Accident Fund.
• The National Health Authority will be the implementing agency for the programme, and will coordinate with the police, hospitals and the State Health Agency.

The Motor Vehicles Amendment Act, 2019

• The Act provides for grant of licenses and permits related to motor vehicles, standards for motor vehicles, and penalties for violation of these provisions.
• The central government will develop a scheme for cashless treatment of road accident victims during golden hour.
• It requires the central government to constitute a Motor Vehicle Accident Fund, to provide compulsory insurance cover to all road users in India.
• The act defines a good samaritan as a person who renders emergency medical or non-medical assistance to a victim at the scene of an accident.
• It allows the central government to order for recall of motor vehicles if a defect in the vehicle may cause damage to the environment, or the driver, or other road users

Prelims Takeaway

• The National Health Authority
• Motor Vehicle Accident Fund