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ABSTRACT
'Kalaignar Kappeetu Thittam (KKT)' or 'Kalaignar Health Insurance Scheme for Life saving Treatment' is one of the innovative health insurance schemes introduced by Tamil Nadu Government for Below Poverty Line (BPL) families. The scheme is indented to provide quality medical care by providing financial protection against high medical expenses for Below BPL. The Scheme was started in 2009 June and at present covers 1.40 corers of BPL families. The present study has been conducted among the beneficiaries of the scheme in the district of Madurai. Performance evaluation of the insurance scheme 'KKT' is the overall objective of the study. The study gives ample evidences of the success of the health scheme. Conscious efforts of the government to enhance the health status of poor have made a very good impact on improving their standard of living. Access to private healthcare service for the poor is another important benefits of the scheme.
Background of the Study
Health Insurance provides risk coverage against any unforeseen illness of bodily injury. It provides coverage for medicine and other medical expenses. Health care systems all over the world are experiencing changes as they look for a new balance between supply and demand. In India, there is a growing demand for higher quality medical care due to poor quality of state owned hospitals, increase of life style diseases, increasing private healthcare cost, increased cost of medicines etc. This makes health insurance more attractive (Business India Inte., 2008).
Health insurance policies always needsto address various concerns properly such as benefits of families, how much people will pay, type of care results from policies (Regnier,2010). Family coverage is an important aspect of choice of type of insurance schemes (Bansk, 2008). Innovative financing schemes exploring increased cost recovery from the users of the health system are explored throughout the world (Moens,1990). Health insurance schemes of government to a large extent overcome the disparity of coverage of the population. Such schemes generally targeted at low-income population. Willingnessto pay forthe micro health insurance schemes by the poor people has been gradually increasing (Mark, 2007). Social movement of such schemes must ensure community participation, autonomy and accountability (Atim, 1999). Mandatory coverage of health insurance for the poor by the state has got funding problems (Lincoln,...