Chennai, Tamil Nadu (CU)_ According to Health Secretary J. Radhakrishnan, the completion of 125 transplants under the TNCMCHIS scheme was a significant milestone. He also praised the involvement of private hospitals that collaborated with government institutions to give the best possible treatment to the patients. He highlighted the major role played by the donors in transplant operations. The number of cadaver donations, which had decreased during the pandemic, has increased now. Additionally, he noted that the immunosuppressants needed for the transplant patients were given under the scheme.
According to the latest statement from Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma. Subramanian, the Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme (TNCMCHIS), which was introduced by the previous Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, had so far benefitted over 1.11 crore people in the state.
At a ceremony held in Perumbakkam to honor physicians from government institutions and Gleneagles Global Health City for performing more than 125 liver transplants under the scheme during the pandemic, he stated that the program had been expanded to include other ailments. He added, “Chief Minister M. K. Stalin wanted us to make it cover more diseases and more hospitals to benefit more deserving patients, which is what it is now”. He also noted that the ‘Makkalai Thedi Maruthuvam’ scheme benefitted around 65 lakh people since its launch in August 2021.
According to Joy Varghese, Director of Hepatology and Transplant Hepatology at Gleneagles Global Health City, of these 125 patients, 21 were suffering from chronic liver failure, for whom the TNCMCHIS team worked tirelessly to provide emergency authorization for liver transplants. Additionally, he added that under the TNCMCHIS, the hospital had successfully completed six liver transplants with mismatched blood groups.
According to Mettu Srinivas Reddy, Director of Liver Transplant and HPB surgery at Gleneagles Global Health City in Chennai, the surgery allowed many patients, particularly the very young, to resume their regular lives. He added, “For families that can’t afford transplants, the health insurance scheme is a boon”. The other speakers were S. Aravind Ramesh, MLA of Sholinganallur, and Anant Rao, COO of IHH Healthcare India.
