Comprehensive medical insurance scheme for SLPA employees

The employees of Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) would be the proud beneficiaries of a comprehensive medical insurance scheme obtained by the National Insurance Trust Fund (NITF), effective from 1 September 2011.  

The agreement in this regard was signed yesterday between the SLPA and NITF at the Sri Lanka Ports Authority.

SLPA Chairman Dr. Priyath B.Wickrama and Managing Director Capt.Nihal Keppetipola signed the agreement on behalf of SLPA while NITF Chairman Senaka De Abegunasekara and Director J. Dadellage signed on behalf of the NITF and was witnessed by Norman Weerarathne - Additional Managing Director of SLPA and Shirani Wanniarachchi - Director (Finance) of SLPA.

The implementation of this medical insurance scheme fulfills one of the few remaining tasks identified in the “Three Year Development Plan” formulated by SLPA Chairman Wickrama, which encompasses a three-year-period commencing 2009.  Though the said plan was prepared taking into consideration, the volatile conditions that made waves in the shipping industry at that time whilst targeting austerity in spending, it embodied the upliftment of the quality of life of employees and introduction of new human resource development procedures as a major area of focus. The SLPA considers a well-looked-after workforce a major underpinning for organisational growth and development. This medical insurance scheme aims at achieving the above proposition.

This scheme was implemented after several discussions with employees.   The SLPA obtained quotations from State-owned insurance companies and after a scrupulous analysis of the proposals submitted by them, the National Insurance Trust Fund was selected for the proposed medical insurance scheme.

The primary objective of this proposal is to introduce a formal medical insurance scheme for the permanent employees of the SLPA to obtain more benefits with ease. Every employee will be issued with an electronic card by NITF containing his or her personal details.

Another objective of this scheme is to provide facilities for employees to obtain treatment from any government or private hospital directly without an intermediary. The annual premium for each permanent employee will be paid by the SLPA and no charge will be levied from an employee for obtaining the membership of this medical scheme.

 In addition, if an employee wishes to introduce his or her spouse or children to this scheme, the SLPA will make arrangements to pay the total premium to the NITF on the basis that the employee agrees to deduct the premium from his or her salary

In order to facilitate speedy reimbursement of claims in respect of expenditure incurred on outdoor treatment under this scheme, a representative of the NITF will be stationed at the Welfare and Industrial Relations Division to whom the relevant documents and bills should be submitted. Thereafter, the reimbursable amount will be credited to the bank account through which the employee draws his or her own salary.

The benefits under this medical insurance scheme inter alia include reimbursement of expenditure incurred for obtaining treatment from a private/government hospital as an indoor patient, child birth in case of female employees, reimbursement of expenditure incurred with the purchase of drugs, payment for spectacles etc. Most importantly, the scheme also carries benefits such as personal accident cover and a critical illness cover including family members, which the SLPA employees were never endowed with in the past.

I.M.C.Nalheer - Administrative Secretary of SLPA, Nalin Aponso - Deputy Chief Manager (Communication and Public Relations) of SLPA and W.G.Vas - Finance Analyst of SLPA were also present at the signing the agreement of the NITF medical insurance scheme for the SLPA employees.