An insurance plan has been launched to give insurance protection to HIV+ recently in Karnataka state. A group health insurance plan recently launched will cover 250 HIV-affected people in the state which is the first of its kind.  The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is supporting the scheme. USAID will support this project called ‘Connect.’

 

Project ‘Connect’ is a programme where a public-private partnership has been built to combat HIV and tuberculosis in India. Whereas TB has been more or less cured, HIV has become a big issue for India’s health infrastructure. In India the number of people affected with HIV runs into the millions. And, more importantly no insurance company has come up with any plan for them.

 

Now, under new insurance cover for HIV+ which however would not be available to individuals will be available to a group of about 300 people. As of now, in the state of Karnataka, the policy has been given to 250 applicants from six districts, namely Bellary, Mangalore, Mandya, Udupi, Kolar and Mysore. Similarly NACO will try to explore the possibility of getting applicants to start saving for medical treatment.