The Supreme Court of India has held that private doctors who provided medical services during the COVID-19 pandemic and later died from the infection are entitled to coverage under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP) insurance scheme for health workers. The ruling was issued on 28 October 2025.
The PMGKP scheme offers financial support of ₹50 lakh to the families of healthcare workers who died due to COVID-19 while performing duties related to patient care during the pandemic. The Court has now clarified that this eligibility also applies to private medical practitioners who kept their clinics or facilities functioning during the pandemic period.
Society will not forgive us if we don’t take care of our doctors and don’t stand for them...
Justice P S Narasimha, presiding over a two-judge bench
The judgment followed an appeal by the family of a private doctor who passed away in June 2020 after contracting COVID-19. Their insurance claim was earlier turned down by state authorities on the basis that the doctor was not officially assigned COVID-19 duty by the government. The High Court upheld that rejection. The Supreme Court reviewed this interpretation and overturned it.
That the said doctor volunteered to offer his medical services by keeping his clinic or hospital open for patients to consult him must be proved by way of some credible evidence…There must also be proof about the fact that the doctor has passed away because of being infected by COVID. Once these two questions are satisfied, it is not for us to question as to whether the doctor has opened his clinic or offered his services for COVID alone.
Justice P S Narasimha (presiding over a two-judge bench)
The Supreme Court observed that private doctors continued to examine and treat patients during the pandemic, often being the first point of contact in many communities. Since SARS-CoV-2 spreads mainly through respiratory droplets and close interaction, the Court stated that private practitioners faced the same occupational exposure risk as those in government hospitals. As a result, the Court ruled that formal deployment was not the only indicator of frontline work during COVID-19.
The PMGKP insurance scheme was introduced in March 2020 as part of emergency public health measures to safeguard families of healthcare providers who lost their lives while attending to patients during the pandemic. Healthcare workers across sectors: government, private, community health, and contract-based services, faced higher infection risks compared to the general population, especially before widespread vaccination and consistent access to protective equipment.
Give the data to us and some information about other parallel schemes that are available apart from the Pradhan Mantri scheme. We will lay down the principle and on that basis, claims can be made to the insurance company. It is for the insurance company to consider and pass orders on the basis of our judgment.
Supreme Court
Other insurance or compensation programs included the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) COVID-19 Relief Scheme and state-level ex gratia support funds for healthcare workers (Employees’ State Insurance Corporation 2021).
To apply for insurance benefits, families need to provide:
Evidence that the clinic or medical service was active during the pandemic period.
Medical documentation confirming COVID-19 as the cause of death.
Identity, relationship, and standard verification documents required by the scheme.
Claims will continue to be processed through state health department nodal officers under existing government guidelines.
The verdict may result in previously rejected claims being re-evaluated. It also provides clarity for handling similar cases that involve private healthcare providers. The decision emphasizes that risk exposure, rather than employment designation, is the key factor in determining eligibility for benefits under the PMGKP insurance scheme.
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. “Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package: Insurance Scheme for Health Workers Fighting COVID-19 — FAQ Document.” Government of India, 2020.
Employees’ State Insurance Corporation. “COVID-19 Relief Scheme.” ESIC, Government of India, 2021.
(Rh/SS/MSM)
