The main opposition today highlighted that the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) is now insisting for pensioners to obtain a prescription from their doctors, purchase their medications from their own resources then submit a claim along with the receipt, and then await NIS approval for a refund.
Before, pensioners and senior citizens were entitled to benefit from a facility whereby, on selected days, they could uplift all of their medications, free of cost.
The PNC/R pointed out that is evident that this is a cost cutting arrangement by NIS. However, given the meager pensions being received; the high cost of many of these medications; and the high cost-of-living, including the cost of transportation to go searching for the medications; pensioners, who have already been driven to the poverty line, have to suffer the further privation imposed to facilitate cost cutting by the NIS.
