Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana

Reference

Recently, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the expansion in beneficiary coverage of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY).

Latest Amendment in Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana

• Under the latest amendment, all senior citizens aged 70 years and above, irrespective of income, will be eligible to avail AB PM-JAY for health coverage.
• This will benefit around six crore senior citizens who will get free health insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh.
• Eligible senior citizens will be issued a new separate card under AB PM-JAY.
• Senior citizens aged 70 years and above from families already covered under AB PM-JAY will get an additional top-up cover of up to ₹5 lakh per year.
  • They will not have to share this with other family members below 70 years of age.
• Senior citizens aged 70 years and above who are already availing benefits under other public health insurance schemes like Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS), Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS), Ayushman Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) can continue with their existing scheme or opt for AB PM-JAY.
• Senior citizens aged 70 years and above who are under private health insurance policies or Employees State Insurance Scheme will also be eligible to receive benefits under AB PM-JAY.

What is AB PM-JAY Scheme

• AB PM-JAY is the world's largest publicly funded health assurance scheme.
• It currently provides health cover of ₹5 lakh per family per year for hospitalization for secondary and tertiary care purposes to 55 crore individuals.
• All members of eligible families (irrespective of their age) are covered under the scheme.
• The scheme has covered 7.37 crore hospitalizations, of which 49% are female beneficiaries.

Continuous expansion of the scheme

• According to the Ministry of Health, the beneficiary base of the AB PM-JAY scheme has been continuously expanding.
• Initially, 10.74 crore poor and vulnerable families from the bottom 40% of India's population were covered under the scheme.
• In January 2022, the beneficiary base under AB PM-JAY was revised from 10.74 crore to 12 crore families.
• The scheme was further expanded to provide free healthcare benefits to 37 lakh Asha / Anganwadi workers / and their families working across the country.