Ayushman Bharat is a flagship healthcare project launched by the Govt of India to facilitate Indians of lower financial groups with affordable healthcare.
Ayushman Bharat Health Card and Ayushman Bharat Health Account are both child projects of Ayushman Bharat Yojana, but with different benefits and targeted towards different income groups.
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What is Ayushman Bharat Card?
The Ayushman Bharat Card consists of two health initiatives – the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) and the Health and Wellness Centre.
Rolled out by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 23 September 2018, the PMJAY scheme aid economically weaker section of the society with quality healthcare. Since its inception, more than 50 crore beneficiaries have enrolled themselves in the scheme.
The beneficiaries of the scheme get an e-card (commonly known as the Ayushman Bharat Card) to avail healthcare services at either a private or govt PMJAY-empanelled hospital, anywhere in the country. Ayushman Bharat cardholders can walk into an impaneled hospital and obtain cashless treatment.
What is Ayushman Bharat Health Account?
ON 27 September 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) with the aim to digitalize the healthcare process and strengthen the health facilities in India.
Under the ABDM, every citizen can create their Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA), initially named as Health ID or Health ID Card.
ABHA is aimed to bridge the gap between various stakeholders in the healthcare ecosystem, making healthcare safe, secure, and easily accessible to the right people.
Health ID or ABHA is a 14 digit unique ID using which an individual can store and save his/ her medical records digitally and share them with doctors and health insurance companies safely. From prescriptions to lab reports, from consultation details to diagnosis reports, individuals can store all documents in ABHA.
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Download From Play StoreWhat are the benefits of the Ayushman Bharat Card?
The Ayushman Bharat Card provides insurance coverage of up to INR 5 lakh on a family floater basis every year. The card entails primary, secondary, and tertiary healthcare services. The coverage includes three days of pre-hospitalization and 15 days of post-hospitalization expenses. The cost of around 1400 procedures including the OT expenses is covered by the card. The Ayushman Card is primarily aimed at helping economically disadvantaged people get access to easy healthcare services.
What are the benefits of ABHA?
ABHA enables easy access to health records. With ABHA, a person has the option to link all personal health records that safely remains as a long-term health history. Health ID enables a person to have access to doctors digitally in a safe and secure environment.However, the access comes only with consent. A stakeholder can access your health/ medical details only after your clear and informed consent. ABHA is built with robust security and encryption mechanisms and does not allow anyone to get your details and medical records without your consent.
Ayushman Bharat Card vs Health ID – A quick comparison at a glance
Ayushman Bharat Card | Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) or Health ID |
People belonging to a lower-income group can avail the card | Any person belonging to any income group can create an ABHA |
An initiative of Ayushman Bharat (Govt of India) | An initiative of Ayushman Bharat (Govt of India) |
Cardholders can avail coverage on their treatments | Account holders can digitally secure their health records in one platform |