Ayushman developed: One week after launch, over two lakh senior citizens join in

According to the most recent official data, during the first week of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s launch of the expanded version of the flagship health insurance program to cover all elderly people, more than 2.16 lakh new beneficiaries over 70 received cards under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY).

According to the data, 32,000 more beneficiaries over 70 who were previously covered under the original scheme’s income-based criteria have re-registered to take advantage of the Rs 5 lakh in income-limitless coverage offered by the extended version.

With around 89,800 cards issued for the elderly, Kerala has registered the most new beneficiaries under the extended version, according to data available with the National Health Authority as of November 7. In addition, the state is predicted to have one of the largest percentages of senior citizens during the next ten years, with people over 60 accounting for 20.9% of the state’s population by 2031.

Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, with more than 53,000 and 47,000 cards, respectively, are the next two states on the list of new senior recipients. With 2.58 crore persons over 60, Uttar Pradesh is predicted to have the greatest old population of any state by 2031, according to census forecasts. Madhya Pradesh is four rungs down, with 1.04 crore. According to the data, historically high-utilisation states like Tamil Nadu (3,156), Telangana (3,056), and Andhra Pradesh (3,488) have had slower registration rates in the expanded category.

TMC-ruled West Bengal and AAP-ruled Delhi are not included in the figures because they chose not to participate in the program. The Prime Minister, incidentally, had lamented the exclusion of senior residents in these two states during the October 29 launch of the extended edition.The Punjab administration, which is governed by the AAP, has, however, adopted the extended version. According to a senior official, the state has issued 5,697 new cards to the elderly in the last week, placing it in the top ten on the list.

About 4.5 crore families with 6 crore older folks are to benefit from the Central Government’s most recent initiative. Everyone over 70, regardless of wealth, will be eligible for a Rs 5 lakh yearly coverage under the enhanced version, which will be divided among family members. This implies that the coverage will be divided between any two senior beneficiaries living in the same home.

An special top-up insurance of Rs 5 lakh would be granted to elderly members of households that are already insured under Ayushman Bharat based on their financial situation. To be eligible for the top-up coverage, these senior beneficiaries will need to re-register. The largest health insurance program of its sort in the world, AB-PMJAY was first introduced in 2018 and has resulted in 6.86 crore hospital admissions. It offers a shared yearly coverage of Rs 5 lakh to all members of qualifying families, which are thought to make up the economically disadvantaged 40% of the population.

In other states, the expanded program—which now covers all older people—is still being implemented. For example, in Maharashtra and Jharkhand, where assembly elections are approaching, its implementation is postponed.

Officials from Maharashtra confirmed the expansion has not been launched. A Jharkhand official said, “The state has yet to adopt the expanded scheme due to the Model Code of Conduct. Registrations for all those over 70 can begin once the state approves the scheme. The state is yet to estimate the scheme’s financial implications, as the age-wise breakdown of the elderly population is still being analysed.”

In UP, an official said “registrations are high even though full-fledged implementation hasn’t started yet”. “Implementation is pending in ten districts where by-elections are scheduled. There is a lot of pent-up demand here, and people have already started claiming benefits,” the official said.

The official said the state is yet to allocate funds for an estimated 66 lakh additional families that will be covered. “Since it’s part of the existing scheme, we’ll initially cover new beneficiaries using current funds and request additional funds through the supplementary budget,” the official said.

In states like Himachal Pradesh, with just over 1,600 registered beneficiaries, officials said the scheme is still gaining traction. “The portal has opened, and we have done trial registrations. We still need to approve an additional budget. Once approved, we’ll launch publicity campaigns and instruct hospitals to start registrations,” a state official said.

In J&K, where the scheme already has universal coverage, an official said the top-up option would “bring more relief” to the elderly and that the additional financial impact on the administration would be “minimal”.