Telangana government on Monday tied up with the National Health Authority (NHA) to implement Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) in the state. Telangana already has a state health insurance scheme called ‘Aarogyasri’ which has now been converged as the Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY Aarogyasri. With this Centre-state merger, as many as 26 lakh beneficiary families (around 1.3 cr. individuals) as per SECC, 2011 data will be eligible to avail services under the scheme in Telangana.
“We are happy to onboard the State of Telangana for the rollout of AB PM-JAY in the State. The beneficiaries from the State are now eligible to avail free healthcare services pan India through our network of more than 22,000 hospitals. This is not only going to benefit the eligible families in the state but will also enable the delivery of healthcare services to PM-JAY beneficiaries from other States/UTs living in Telangana,” said Dr RS Sharma, CEO, NHA at the launch event.
“The providers’ base has also increased. Our call center has started getting calls from the eligible population in the State. We are committed to taking the benefit of the scheme to all eligible beneficiaries,” he added.
The launch of the scheme in Telangana is a significant milestone in the country’s journey towards Ayushman Bharat. The NHA along with the State Health Agency in Telangana will undertake necessary action to ensure that all eligible beneficiaries are provided free healthcare services under the converged scheme.
The Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY has been rolled out across 33 states and UTs, with Telangana being the latest on the list. Beneficiaries of the scheme are entitled to avail free healthcare coverage of up to Rs 5 lakhs per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization.
Health services can be availed in any of the 22,000 empanelled public and private hospitals across the country through the scheme’s portability feature with the help of PM-JAY e-cards issued to the beneficiaries.