Implementation of the Employees Health Scheme (EHS) providing comprehensive cashless healthcare for State Government staff continues to face bottlenecks.

After complaints pertaining to entry of old data into health scheme records, concerns have been raised over the deduction of 1.5% basic pension as subscription of pensioners. Pensioners have complained about ‘unauthorised’ deduction of EHS subscription without implementation of the scheme and asked for postponement of further deduction until the actual implementation of the health scheme.

The Finance department, in an unofficial note to the Health department, has asked it to take further action and sought its intervention into the issue. The new employees health scheme, launched officially on July 17, envisages provision of cashless medical and surgical treatment to employees, pensioners and their dependents. It covers 1,816 packages across 114 government hospitals and 886 empanelled private hospitals in the State.

The scheme has however been a non-starter thus far in the absence of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the government and the Telangana Aarogyasri Hospitals Network Association (TANHA). The scheme could not be made operational as the stalemate between the government and TANHA over the package rates and pending dues remains unresolved. Over nine lakh pensioners are awaiting an early resolution of the issue so that the health scheme becomes effective at the earliest.

Employees and pensioners are also submitting representations relating to grant of six pending instalments of Dearness Allowance (DA) since July 1, 2023 and the recommendations of the Pay Revision Commission (PRC). The government is obligated to release the DA instalments and pay revision so that the increase in salary/pension will help them meet their medical related expenses. “Release of pending DAs and implementation of the new PRC will ensure a salary hike of ₹15,000 a month which will be sufficient to meet our medical expenses,” an official told The Hindu.

As regards the guidelines, employees are recalling the previous rule that in case of couples — husband and wife — being government employees, deduction of contribution would be made from the salary of one of them exempting payment by the other. There are also concerns regarding the modalities that would be adopted for selection of eligible dependents of the employees who would be beneficiaries under the scheme.

Published - August 12, 2026 07:16 pm IST