Big Boost for Delhi Healthcare: Private Hospitals to Join Ayushman Bharat Soon

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): All major private hospitals in Delhi will soon be empanelled under the Central Government's flagship Ayushman Bharat Health Insurance Scheme. Delhi Health Minister Pankaj Singh shared this information, adding that the change will be visible within the next 20–25 days. He made the announcement during an event marking 100 days of the BJP government under Chief Minister Rekha Gupta.

Minister Singh stated that big hospital chains like Max, Fortis, and Apollo have so far not been part of the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY). Currently, 11 government hospitals and 82 private hospitals are listed on the scheme’s dashboard. He blamed the previous AAP government for non-clearance of payments under alternative schemes, which led to hesitation from private hospitals in joining PM-JAY.

Singh alleged that the previous government delayed payments under the Delhi Arogya Nidhi (a financial aid scheme operated by the Directorate of Health Services). He assured that within the next 20–25 days, all major hospitals will be empanelled, and discussions with them will begin shortly.

Under Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY, patients from poor families receive health insurance coverage of up to ₹5 lakh, with individuals above 70 also eligible for the same. The central government provides ₹5 lakh, and Delhi CM Rekha Gupta announced that the state government will offer an additional ₹5 lakh top-up.

According to government data, over 3.16 lakh beneficiaries from poor families and 30,000 senior citizens have been registered under the scheme in Delhi. Beneficiaries are selected based on data from the National Food Security Act (NFSA) and the Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC) 2011. So far, 601 people have availed healthcare services under this scheme.