SC breather for central government employees, pensioners - check how you could benefit

In a major relief to central government employees and pensioners, the Supreme Court has said that a government employee cannot be denied Mediclaim just because he/she chose a private hospital for treatment during emergency. The court in its verdict on Saturday said that an employee or a pensioner cannot be denied their share of Mediclaim even for receiving treatment outside CGHS-empanelled hospitals.  

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As per a India Today report, reimbursement cannot be denied to a central government employee either during service or after retirement if he/she does not seek treatment from a hospital that is not on the list of CGHS-empanelled hospitals, the SC said. 

"The right to medical claim cannot be denied merely because the name of the hospital is not included in the government order," the bench of Justice RK Agrawal and Justice Ashok Bhushan was quoted saying by India Today.

The court said the government will have to verify that the claim being made by an employee or pensioner is in the record of certified doctor or hospital or not. The SC said that the government can also verify if the employee or pensioner concerned have actually taken treatment or not. Based on these facts, an employee or a pensioner can be denied or granted Mediclaim, it said

The apex court order came on a petition filed by a retired central government official who had sought treatment from two private hospitals and demanded the reimbursement of medical bills.