Prime Minister Narendra Modi may roll out a significant expansion of the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) on October 29, providing health coverage to all citizens aged 70 years and above, regardless of their income status, a PTI report quoted an official source as saying. This initiative aims to benefit approximately six crore senior citizens across 4.5 crore households.
The expanded scheme will offer free treatment up to Rs 5 lakh at any of the 29,648 hospitals empanelled under AB-PMJAY, including 12,696 private hospitals. To facilitate this, eligible individuals must register on the PMJAY portal or the Ayushman app. Those already holding an Ayushman card will need to reapply and complete their eKYC to obtain a new card.
Senior citizens aged 70 and above who belong to families already covered under AB PM-JAY will receive an additional top-up cover of Rs 5 lakh per year. Others in the same age group will receive coverage up to Rs 5 lakh per year on a family basis.
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Additionally, the U-WIN portal, developed to maintain a digital registry of routine immunisations, will also be officially launched on the same day. This platform, a replication of the COVID-19 vaccine management system Co-WIN, is designed to keep a permanent digital record of vaccinations for pregnant women and children from birth to age 17 under the Universal Immunization Programme.
“The U-WIN platform will help in creating a comprehensive immunisation registry, ensuring that all vaccinations are documented and easily accessible,” the source further said.
The AB PM-JAY scheme is currently operational in 33 states and Union territories, excluding Delhi, Odisha, and West Bengal. However, citizens aged 70 or above as per their Aadhar card will be eligible to apply for the scheme.
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