New health insurance scheme for school children

Cabinet this week decided to award Sri Lanka Insurance the contract for the group health insurance the Government is offering all Sri Lankan schoolchildren. 

Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation Ltd. submitted the lowest bid to provide the group health insurance scheme to all schoolchildren for 365 days within 2017 and 2018 for Rs. 2,348,000,000, without value added tax. 

The Ministry of Education is the procurement entity for the insurance scheme.

Under the scheme all 4.5 million schoolchildren between the ages of five and 19 will receive an insurance policy of Rs. 200.000. The scheme is set to cover hospitalisation costs subject to a maximum of Rs. 100,000 and out outpatient services up to Rs. 10,000. The proposal to give schoolchildren a health insurance scheme was presented during the Budget Speech for 2017.  The scheme will target all Sri Lankan students, including students of government schools, non-aided or aided private schools, international schools and pirivena schools, Education Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam informed Cabinet. The mechanism through which the scheme will operate will be worked out once the preparatory items are completed.