Foreign Employment Insurance to cover 15 critical illnesses

Kathmandu, Jan. 24: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda Tuesday announced that the foreign employment term insurance would now cover 15 critical illnesses.

Addressing a press conference at Baluwatar, he announced that the foreign insurance term insurance would be expanded to include life insurance, loss from income as well as critical diseases like cancer, kidney failure, major organ transplant, stroke, coma, total blindness, paralysis and mental illness caused due to accident.

"The new insurance scheme would include an additional Rs. 500,000 coverage and the workers in the foreign countries will get up to Rs. 2 million from insurance companies," he said.

The new provisions will come into effect from Saturday, January 28.

The PM said that mental illness would also be included in the critical illness list within three months and directed the Insurance Board, the insurance sector regulator, to formulate the necessary policy for the same.

PM Prachanda also announced that the compensation money to the families of Nepalese workers who receive fatal injuries in accidents or die in foreign countries would be raised to Rs. 700,000 from the current Rs. 400,000.

After the implementation of this provision, if any worker meets a fatal accident or dies in foreign countries, his family will get about Rs. 2.7 million.

The new scheme will be applicable to all Nepalese citizens working abroad, but they need to pay an additional Rs. 500 to get coverage for critical illnesses.

PM Prachanda also announced that he would make the term insurance mandatory for all Nepalese who go to India for employment from February 12 this year.

"As per the new provisions, Nepalese workers in India will have the facility of life insurance covering critical illness, too. The life insurance will cover Rs. 750,000 and health insurance Rs. 500,000. Including Rs. 150,000 compensation from the Foreign Employment Promotion Board, total coverage will be Rs. 1.4 million," he said.

The term of insurance for Nepalese workers in India will be for one year in general. If the term of employment is fixed, the insurance coverage can be obtained for the specified period.

The Prime Minister said that a three months' grace period would be provided in the insurance policy for renewal. It means that if any worker sustains critical injuries or dies within three months of the expiry of the policy, he would get all the benefits of the policy.

The government also said that the families of the workers could also renew the policy.

Chairman of the Insurance Board Chiranjibi Chapagain said that the announcement was important for the safety of Nepalese workers abroad and expressed his commitment to prepare the necessary policy guidelines at the earliest.