I am on treatment since 5 months but I have not received any money’: coverage, delays and implementation challenges of ‘Direct Benefit Transfer’ for tuberculosis patients
A mixed methods study from South India
Abstract
In March 2018, the Government of India launched a direct benefit transfer (DBT) scheme to provide nutritional support for all tuberculosis (TB) patients in line with END TB strategy. Here, the money (@INR 500 [~8 USD] per month) is deposited electronically into the bank accounts of beneficiaries. To avail the benefit, patients are to be notified in NIKSHAY (web-based notification portal of India’s national TB programme) and provide bank account details. Once these details are entered into NIKSHAY, checked and approved by the TB programme officials, it is sent to the public financial management system (PFMS) portal for further processing and payment.
The objectives of this study are to assess the coverage and implementation barriers of DBT among TB patients notified during April–June 2018 and residing in Dakshina Kannada, a district in South India.
This research was supported by the UK Department for International Development’s Operational Research Capacity Building Programme led by the International Union Against TB and Lung Disease (The Union)
## Citation
Nirgude AS, Kumar AM V., Collins T, Naik PR, Parmar M, Tao L, Akshaya KM, Raghuveer P, Yatnatti SK, Nagendra N, Nagaraja SB, Habeena S, MN B, Rao R, Shastri S. ‘I am on treatment since 5 months but I have not received any money’: coverage, delays and implementation challenges of ‘Direct Benefit Transfer’ for tuberculosis patients – a mixed-methods study from South India. Global Health Action. 2019;12(1):1633725.