A high level meeting was chaired by Bihar’s Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to take stock of rising death due to Encephalitis outbreak in north Bihar districts. Nitish announced that state government would bear the cost of treatment and reimburse transportation cost incurred in ferrying patients referred by Primary Health Centre (PHCs) to hospital in Muzaffarpur city.
He also ordered immediate activation of PHCs in affected districts to meet exigency. Government has already announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs 4 Lakh for each patient suspected of Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) and those who lost lives during heatwave attack.
The Chief Minister also ordered to constitute a team to study the social and economic conditions of victim families.
While briefing media, chief secretary Deepak Kumar admitted that AES has claimed 103 lives in Muzaffarpur district and death due to heatwave has risen to 100.
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“Services of government run ambulances are already free of cost. If any AES affected patient reach hospital by hiring a private ambulance or vehicle, the government would reimburse the hiring charges, added Deepak Kumar.
Kumar also said that so far 440 AES patients have been admitted, of which 129 were discharged with proper treatment and 101 were under treatment while 103 could not be saved. In comparison to year 2012, 2013, the mortality rate is less i.e. 26 per cent.
State’s principal secretary, health Sanjay Kumar said, the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for treating AES was enacted on ground ensuring availability of necessary equipments, drugs at 222 Primary Health Centres (PHCs) of affected districts of the state.
