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Assam Government introduced Right to Health bill
Assam government on Thursday March 11,
2010 became the first state in the country to introduce a bill
guaranteeing the right to health and well-being to keep their citizen
healthier.
Responding to an appeal from the Centre for legislating on health
rights, the state government tabled the landmark Assam Public Health
Bill, 2010 in the assembly. The bill, which will be put to vote on
March 31 and should sail through, proposes path-breaking provisions for
health equity and justice to achieve the goal of health for all.
It makes it mandatory for all new development projects to carry out a
health impact assessment. It also proposes to make it compulsory for
both government and private hospitals to provide free healthcare
services and maintain appropriate protocol of treatment for the first
24 hours to an emergency patient.
Health does not mean just doctors and hospitals, but everything that
influences the well being of a human being. This is a historic bill and
we are the pioneers in the country after the Centre requested all
states to bring a law on the right to health, said Assam Health
Minister Mr Himanta Biswa Sarma.
Source: The Times
of India, New Delhi (March 12, 2010)
