Guwahati, Oct 14: Newly elected Member of Parliament from the Nagaon constituency, Devasish Sharma, said today that he would explore declaring cancer a notifiable disease.
Talking to The Assam Tribune, Sharma, who has been associated with cancer care for decades and now is the president of Cancer Care India, said that if cancer is declared a notifiable disease, the doctors, hospitals, laboratories, etc. would be compelled by law to report all cancer cases to designated public health authorities.
Such a move will enable the Government to take measures for early detection of the disease and create awareness among the people, Sharma said.
Sharma pointed out that the Ayushman card is a game changer for cancer treatment for economically challenged people. He said that the economically challenged people can get treatment up to Rs five lakh a year with the card in any need to explore the possibility of including the pre-treatment tests like PET scan and other tests under the purview of the scheme,” he added.
He also pointed out that earlier, it was very difficult for poor people to go for cancer treatment, but with the Ayushman cards, they can now afford treatment.
Sharma assured that as an MP, he would like to explore the possibility of providing some relief to the middle class of people, who are by and large deprived of any financial assistance in their battle against cancer.
From his experience in cancer care for decades, Sharma said that the middle class, which comprises 31 to 40 per cent of Indian citizens (depending on how one defines middle class) and this section of people often face serious hardships in their battle against cancer as they do not get any financial aid from the Government.
“If some financial assistance can be provided to the middle class, it will be of great help,” he added.
Meanwhile, after winning the election, Sharma is revisiting the areas where he had campaigned to thank the voters for supporting him in the electoral battle.