Freedom fighters will get medical treatment at all government and specialised hospitals at free and/or minimal cost.
To this end, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs and the Health Service Division under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Sunday at the Secretariat in the city.
During the signing ceremony, Health Minister Mohammad Nasim said that the government has decided to bear the costs for health treatment of all the freedom fighters, many of whom are suffering from old-age complicacies.
The MoU states that the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs will allocate the funds for the initiative and distribute them to Upazila and District Health Complexes and specialised hospitals in Dhaka.
The hospital authorities will then use the funds for the treatment of the freedom fighters, reports UNB.
Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Haque said that Tk 1.5 million will initially be distributed to the hospitals on Monday, while the funds will be regularly replenished once the hospital authorities apply for reimbursements.
Some of the specialised hospitals include Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University Hospital, Shaheed Sheikh Abu Naser Specialised Hospital, Khulna and more.
As a result of the MoU, the freedom fighters will receive all sorts of healthcare benefits and facilities from the government hospitals, including complimentary treatment, operation and medicines.
Committees will be set up in upazila, district, divisional and Dhaka city/specialised hospital levels to oversee the entire process, which will be led by upazila nirbahi officer (UNO), additional district administrator, additional deputy commissioners and a joint secretary from health services division respectively.
Similarly, the funds will be given from the liberation war affairs ministry to the health and family planning officer for upazila level, civil surgeons for district level, hospital director for government hospitals and head of specialised hospitals, so that they can be the designated personnel for such matters.