Finance
The Union government approved health coverage for everyone aged 70 and up under the national insurance scheme Ayushman Bharat.
The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, announced in a statement that the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) will help 4.5 crore households and six crore senior individuals. The free cover, worth ₹ 5 lakh, will be for the entire family.
“With this approval, all senior citizens of the age 70 years and above irrespective of their socio- economic status would be eligible to avail the benefits of AB PM-JAY. The eligible senior citizens would be issued a new distinct card under AB PM-JAY,” the government said in the statement.
Senior citizens aged 70 and above belonging to families who are currently protected under AB PM-JAY would receive an additional top-up cover of up to ₹ 5 lakh per year. This insurance will not be shared with family members under the age of 70, according to the government.
Senior citizens over the age of 70 who are already covered by other public health insurance schemes such as the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS), the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS), and the Ayushman Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) have the option of continuing with their current scheme or switching to AB PMJAY.
Senior citizens of 70 years and above, who are under private health insurance policies or Employees’ State Insurance Scheme, will be eligible to avail benefits.
“We are committed to ensuring accessible, affordable and top quality healthcare for every Indian,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on X.
The AB PM-JAY is the world’s largest publicly sponsored health assurance system, providing health cover of ₹ 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization to 55 million people, or 12.34 crore families.
The scheme covers all members of qualifying households, regardless of their age. The initiative covered 7.37 crore hospital admissions, with women accounting for 49 percent of the recipients. According to the government, the initiative has provided over ₹1 lakh crore in benefits to the general populace.
The expansion of cover to senior citizens of 70 and above was announced by PM Modi in April.
According to the government, the AB PM-JAY scheme’s beneficiary base has grown steadily. Initially, 10.74 crore poor and vulnerable families comprising the bottom 40 per cent of India’s population were covered under the scheme.
Later, in January 2022, the government changed the recipient base under AB PM-JAY from 10.74 crore to 12 crore families, taking into account India’s 11.7 percent decadal population growth from 2011.
The plan was expanded to provide free healthcare to 37 lakh ASHAs/AWWs/AWHs and their families across the country. AB PM-JAY will provide free healthcare coverage of ₹ 5 lakh to all citizens aged 70 and above across the country.
Source:IE
