Shimla, April 10 -- Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Thursday said that in the wake of irregularities in the HIMCARE scheme, the Himachal Pradesh government is bringing reforms to ensure transparency and help curb the possibility of corruption in the scheme. He reiterated that the state is working on replacing it with a new insurance-based model. Presiding over a review meeting on reforms being undertaken in the health sector, Sukhu said, "During the tenure of the previous government, instances of misappropriating funds through the creation of fraudulent bills under the HIMCARE scheme have come to light. We have already detected four such cases. An internal audit had pointed to a scam of around Rs.110 crore. We will bring the truth before the public." Regarding "improvements" to further strengthen the HIMCARE Scheme, Sukhu said, "These reforms will ensure transparency in the scheme and help curb the possibility of corruption." Now, under the HIMCARE Scheme, government hospitals will be paid the lower amount between the actual cost of treatment (including consumables) and the fixed package rate. Now, the hospitals must submit bills of the actual expenses along with their claims. Expenditures such as registration fees, bed charges, nursing and boarding will not be included in such claims. In addition, fees for surgeons, anesthetists, doctors and consultants, as well as charges for anesthesia, blood transfusion, oxygen, operation theatre use, surgical equipment, medicines and patient meals will not be the part of these reimbursement claims. "These expenses are already being borne separately under the HIMCARE Scheme and are also provided to government hospitals through budgetary allocations," clarified the chief minister. Approximately 4.33 lakh families are registered under the HIMCARE. Hitting out at Congress government during protest at Balichowki in the Seraj Assembly constituency, former chief minister and leader of the Opposition Jai Ram Thakur said, "The CM is conspiring to shut down the HIMCARE scheme."...