Hyderabad, December 14: The State Government has commenced the exercise to extend crop insurance scheme with village as unit to all the 22 districts from the next financial year.
The scheme is currently being implemented in 10 districts on a pilot basis, but could not be extended to other districts immediately because of the absence of budgetary provisions.
The agriculture and allied departments are also stepping up pressure on the Finance Department for increasing the total budgetary allocations to over Rs. 30,000 crore during the next fiscal, against Rs. 22,647 crore this year. Addressing a press conference here on Thursday, Agriculture Minister N. Raghuveera Reddy said the Government had, in principle, decided to extend the Pavala Vaddi (3 per cent interest per annum) scheme to farmers. Bankers and officials concerned had been asked to work out the modalities to launch the scheme from the next kharif.
Mr. Raghuveera Reddy criticised the TDP and BJP for exhorting farmers to take to the streets and advised them not to “play with the lives of ryots ” after the Congress came to power. The two parties should come out with “at least a single scheme” launched by them when they were in power, he said, asking them to take on the Government politically instead of trying to disturb farmers.
Clarification sought
The TDP in particular, should clarify about the action plan it released recently for farmers, he said. . “The TDP should clarify whether it lacked commitment to provide free power or was backing out from the earlier promise ,” he asked.
Friday, December 14, 2007
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Governor wants $30 million to jump-start insurance for all
Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. wants to make a $30 million "down payment" on a comprehensive, three-year proposal that would require all Utahns to be insured.
That money, which would expand eligibility for Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Plan (CHIP), is a significant first step toward implementing sweeping health-system reform in the state, Huntsman said.
"The way we go about handling health care is economically unsustainable," he said Monday, pointing out that health care costs in Utah grew at more than double the rate of inflation last year. Fewer than 60 percent of businesses now offer health insurance to their employees.
His plan, a confidential working draft of which was provided to The Salt Lake Tribune last week, "is about costs, and it's about quality and it's about access," he said.
But Huntsman, who deflected reporters' questions about the details of his plan at a news conference, said a blueprint won't be rolled out until the Legislature's caucuses can review it - which could be a few weeks away.
"This is an effort that is driven by the Legislature, by our office, by the business community and certainly by many advocates as well," he said. "So this is an all hands on deck effort and one we're taking very, very seriously."
The health system reform, according to the draft, would aim to cover the poor by boosting enrollment in state plans such as Medicaid, CHIP and Utah's Premium Partnership for Health [UPP], coverage for which nearly half of the state's 360,000 uninsured residents qualify.
The $30 million, included in the governor's budget recommendations for fiscal year 2009, would expand eligibility for Medicaid to those earning up to 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines, up from 133 percent. For CHIP, children in families earning up to 250 percent would qualify, up from 200 percent, Huntsman said.
The next part of the plan would include devising a way to subsidize working families who don't qualify for these programs and can't afford private insurance; and creating consequences that force those who can afford health insurance to buy it.
One possibility, for instance, is to require Utahns to have a basic level of health insurance before they could apply for a job or register for higher education, according to the working draft.
The idea, said David Sundwall, director of the Utah Department of Health, is that if every Utahn were insured, health care costs would be contained.
"If everyone is covered there is not that opportunity for cost shifting," said Sundwall, who is involved in the health reform effort. "The sad thing is now we have people with no health insurance - but with very high health care costs - and they're what make the costs go up."
In a state such as Utah, he added, "the private insurance-based approach is the way to go right now."
While making individuals responsible for their health insurance will require a new mind-set for the state, Huntsman said, "it will have to be part of what we do." Over time, Utahns will "come to the logical end point that while it is burdensome at first glance, it's economically an imperative for our society."
Funds to create a statewide database to report health care costs and outcomes are included in his 2009 budget, as well as money to develop technology for health care providers to share such information.
"We've got to engage," Huntsman said, "and we're beginning that process."
That money, which would expand eligibility for Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Plan (CHIP), is a significant first step toward implementing sweeping health-system reform in the state, Huntsman said.
"The way we go about handling health care is economically unsustainable," he said Monday, pointing out that health care costs in Utah grew at more than double the rate of inflation last year. Fewer than 60 percent of businesses now offer health insurance to their employees.
His plan, a confidential working draft of which was provided to The Salt Lake Tribune last week, "is about costs, and it's about quality and it's about access," he said.
But Huntsman, who deflected reporters' questions about the details of his plan at a news conference, said a blueprint won't be rolled out until the Legislature's caucuses can review it - which could be a few weeks away.
"This is an effort that is driven by the Legislature, by our office, by the business community and certainly by many advocates as well," he said. "So this is an all hands on deck effort and one we're taking very, very seriously."
The health system reform, according to the draft, would aim to cover the poor by boosting enrollment in state plans such as Medicaid, CHIP and Utah's Premium Partnership for Health [UPP], coverage for which nearly half of the state's 360,000 uninsured residents qualify.
The $30 million, included in the governor's budget recommendations for fiscal year 2009, would expand eligibility for Medicaid to those earning up to 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines, up from 133 percent. For CHIP, children in families earning up to 250 percent would qualify, up from 200 percent, Huntsman said.
The next part of the plan would include devising a way to subsidize working families who don't qualify for these programs and can't afford private insurance; and creating consequences that force those who can afford health insurance to buy it.
One possibility, for instance, is to require Utahns to have a basic level of health insurance before they could apply for a job or register for higher education, according to the working draft.
The idea, said David Sundwall, director of the Utah Department of Health, is that if every Utahn were insured, health care costs would be contained.
"If everyone is covered there is not that opportunity for cost shifting," said Sundwall, who is involved in the health reform effort. "The sad thing is now we have people with no health insurance - but with very high health care costs - and they're what make the costs go up."
In a state such as Utah, he added, "the private insurance-based approach is the way to go right now."
While making individuals responsible for their health insurance will require a new mind-set for the state, Huntsman said, "it will have to be part of what we do." Over time, Utahns will "come to the logical end point that while it is burdensome at first glance, it's economically an imperative for our society."
Funds to create a statewide database to report health care costs and outcomes are included in his 2009 budget, as well as money to develop technology for health care providers to share such information.
"We've got to engage," Huntsman said, "and we're beginning that process."
Saturday, December 8, 2007
Missing the premium payment date
Opting for the right insurance cover is like taking your first step towards financial planning. But if you want to keep this security cover intact then you need to be financially disciplined and make those timely payments towards the premium amount. Many times because of sheer negligence or unforeseen circumstances, you miss upon making the payments on time. And when you find those bills, reminders stacked in one corner of the house, you are not sure whether to make a call to the company and revive your policy or simply let it go. Well, if you have been deliberating the same, here is a lowdown on how you can revive your policy.
The Process
There is a misconception that once you miss your due date for paying premium, the insurance company cancels the policy. It is advisable that before you decide to forego your policy, you should check out with your agent or the insurance company what’s the status of your policy. All insurance companies give a grace period of 30 days after the due date.
Nonetheless, even then if you are not able to utilise this grace period, it doesn’t mean that it’s all over. “You can revive the policy till six months from the due date (including grace period) is over. You will be required to pay interest on outstanding premium amount as penalty. The interest, in our case, is 10.33% per annum or higher depending upon the policy that you hold and this vary from company to company and policy to policy,” says Kalpana Sampat, chief – underwriting, claims & group operations, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance. Any policy can be revived during the life time of the life assured, but before the date of expiry of policy term. You need to submit proof of continued insurability to the satisfaction of the insurance company and make the requisite payments of all the arrears of premium together with interest to revive your policy.
Old V/S New
If you believe that reviving the old policy is not a good idea, then you are wrong. Financial planners believe that under no circumstances, you should discontinue the old policy and apply for a newer one. A person who defaults on a policy payment is generally in financial lurch. You need to take into consideration age factor, since you bought your old policy at a young age so the benefits acrrued till date will go away if you take a new policy. Same is the case with ULIPs where the commission charges are higher in the first few years and lesser amount is invested.
However, Manoj Agarwal, head – insurance advisory, SKP Moneywise believes that this theory doesn’t holds true if the policy has been in a state of lapse for over five years, reviving may not be the best option. “If a policyholder wants to revive a policy after five years, we suggest that he take up a new policy, since the fine on premium may be very high by that time,” he says
The Process
There is a misconception that once you miss your due date for paying premium, the insurance company cancels the policy. It is advisable that before you decide to forego your policy, you should check out with your agent or the insurance company what’s the status of your policy. All insurance companies give a grace period of 30 days after the due date.
Nonetheless, even then if you are not able to utilise this grace period, it doesn’t mean that it’s all over. “You can revive the policy till six months from the due date (including grace period) is over. You will be required to pay interest on outstanding premium amount as penalty. The interest, in our case, is 10.33% per annum or higher depending upon the policy that you hold and this vary from company to company and policy to policy,” says Kalpana Sampat, chief – underwriting, claims & group operations, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance. Any policy can be revived during the life time of the life assured, but before the date of expiry of policy term. You need to submit proof of continued insurability to the satisfaction of the insurance company and make the requisite payments of all the arrears of premium together with interest to revive your policy.
Old V/S New
If you believe that reviving the old policy is not a good idea, then you are wrong. Financial planners believe that under no circumstances, you should discontinue the old policy and apply for a newer one. A person who defaults on a policy payment is generally in financial lurch. You need to take into consideration age factor, since you bought your old policy at a young age so the benefits acrrued till date will go away if you take a new policy. Same is the case with ULIPs where the commission charges are higher in the first few years and lesser amount is invested.
However, Manoj Agarwal, head – insurance advisory, SKP Moneywise believes that this theory doesn’t holds true if the policy has been in a state of lapse for over five years, reviving may not be the best option. “If a policyholder wants to revive a policy after five years, we suggest that he take up a new policy, since the fine on premium may be very high by that time,” he says
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