APSRTC union urges government to revive medical scheme for retired employees

Leaders of Andhra Pradesh Public Transport Department (APPTD-APSRTC) Employees Union urged the State government to revive the Retired Employees Medical Scheme (REMS).

In a representation submitted to the A.P. State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) Vice-Chairman and Managing Director Ch. Dwaraka Tirumala Rao on Tuesday, the employees union State president P. Damodara Rao and general secretary G.V. Narasayya said that before the merger of the corporation employees in the government, retired RTC employees who wanted to opt for REMS enrolled in the scheme by contributing a certain amount.

Through this scheme, the retired employees and their spouses received all the medical facilities and medicines at the RTC-empanelled hospitals and additionally, the RTC management provided coverage of up to ₹4 lakh for lifetime medical facilities through referral hospitals. However, the REMS scheme was scrapped in 2020 after the merger, causing distress to nearly 6,000 employees, who have been facing difficulties due to lack of medical support, they said.

The employees union leaders said that although the government had issued a GO in January this year, the scheme had not been implemented and retired employees continue to face the difficulties. They urged the government to implement the scheme, making it voluntary for the employees to pay contributions to receive medical facilities.