The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Department has launched a large-scale inquiry into irregularities in medical treatment under the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s flagship Sehat Card Plus programme, seeking records from all public and private hospitals.
According to a senior Health Department official, this is the largest inquiry into the Sehat Card programme to date.
The department has divided the inquiry into two phases. In the first phase, records have been sought from more than 200 private hospitals empanelled under Sehat Card Plus. The records include details of patients admitted under the programme, particularly surgeries, medicines and payments.
The inquiry team has requested records covering the period from 2019 to 2026, including those of private hospitals that have been blacklisted. In the second phase, the affairs of government hospitals across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will be investigated.
According to the Finance Department, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has spent Rs125 billion on the Sehat Card programme since 2014. Meanwhile, Rs50 billion has been allocated for the province’s settled and tribal districts for the current fiscal year.
Medical treatment facilities under the Sehat Card programme were introduced in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2014. In 2019, the programme was granted universal health coverage status, bringing all residents of the province under its umbrella.
Various political parties have accused the PTI of large-scale corruption in the name of the Sehat Card programme. The ongoing inquiry in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is expected to shed light on the facts surrounding these allegations.
Also Read: KP launches probe into mega scandal of worth Rs30 million
