Launched by the National Health Policy 2017, to achieve the vision of Universal Health Coverage (UHC), this initiative has been designed to meet Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and its underlining commitment, which is to “leave no one behind.”
Ayushman Bharat is an attempt to move from a sectoral and segmented approach of health service delivery to a comprehensive need-based health care service. This scheme aims to undertake path-breaking interventions to holistically address the healthcare system (covering prevention, promotion, and ambulatory care) at the primary, secondary, and tertiary levels. Ayushman Bharat adopts a continuum of care approach, comprising of two inter-related components, which are -
· Health and Wellness Centers (HWCs)
· Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY)
1. Health and Wellness Centers (HWCs)
In February 2018, the Government of India announced the creation of 150000 Health and Wellness Centers (HWCs) by transforming the existing Sub Centers and Primary Health Centers. These centers are to deliver Comprehensive Primary Health Care (CPHC) bringing healthcare closer to the homes of people. They cover both, maternal and child health services and non-communicable diseases, including free essential drugs and diagnostic services.
2. Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY)
The second component under Ayushman Bharat is the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojna or PM-JAY as it is popularly known. This scheme was launched on 23rd September 2018 in Ranchi, Jharkhand by the Honorable Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi.
Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY is the largest health assurance scheme in the world which aims at providing a health cover of Rs.5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization to over 10.74 crore poor and vulnerable families (approximately 50 crore beneficiaries) that form the bottom 40% of the Indian population. The households included are based on the deprivation and occupational criteria of Socio-Economic Caste Census 2011 for rural and urban areas respectively.
Key Features of PM-JAY
· PM-JAY provides cashless access to health care services for the beneficiary at the point of service, that is, the hospital.
· PM-JAY envisions to help mitigate catastrophic expenditure on medical treatment which pushes nearly 6 crore Indians into poverty each year.
· It covers up to 3 days of pre-hospitalization and 15 days post-hospitalization expenses such as diagnostics and medicines.
· There is no restriction on the family size, age or gender.
· All pre-existing conditions are covered from day one.
· Benefits of the scheme are portable across the country i.e. a beneficiary can visit any empanelled public or private hospital in India to avail cashless treatment.
· Services include approximately 1,393 procedures covering all the costs related to treatment, including but not limited to drugs, supplies, diagnostic services, physicians fees, room charges, surgeon charges, OT and ICU charges, etc.
· Public hospitals are reimbursed for healthcare services at par with the private hospitals.
Nayandeep Eye Hospital’s Association with Ayushman Bharat Yojana
Nayandeep eye hospital has been actively associated with Ayushman Bharat Yojana since 2018. Nayandeep Eye Hospital has successfully completed more than 8000 surgeries under Ayushman Bharat Yojana and attends an average count of 50 OPD cases per day.
We believe medical assistance should be a basic right for every human being irrespective of race, caste, gender, and social status, as life cannot be valued in terms of money.
