The newly elected BJP government led by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has made a host of announcements at its first Cabinet in Nabanna, West Bengal.  Much to expectations, the Bengal government has announced that the state will be aligned to centre’s Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana’ (PM-JAY). Under the Ayushman Bharat health-insurance scheme, citizens can avail cashless treatment of Rs 5 lakh.

Ayushman Bharat, world’s largest health-insurance scheme, offers annual hospitalisation benefits of up to Rs 5 lakh per family for secondary and tertiary care.

Here are a few quick points on Ayushman Bharat –Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana

1. Ayushman Bharat –Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana provides cashless and paperless access to services for the beneficiary at the point of service. AB-PMJAY is the world’s largest Government funded health assurance scheme.

2. The benefits under AB-PMJAY are portable across the country. There is no cap on family size, or age or gender.

3. Entitled families are able to use the quality health services they need without facing financial hardships.

4. AB-PMJAY provides services only for inpatient treatment, therefore, only hospitals providing inpatient services are empanelled under this scheme.

5. AB-PMJAY provides treatment corresponding to a total of 1669 procedures under 26 different specialties including chronic diseases like Cancer, Diabetes, Heart Disease and other non-communicable diseases and renal and corneal transplant. Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy packages, along with surgical oncology are covered as part of cancer treatment under the scheme.

6. The Indian government has also decided to offer free health insurance to all the children who lost their parents to COVID-19 under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme (PM-JAY). 

7. All children will be enrolled as a beneficiary under Ayushman Bharat Scheme (PM-JAY) with a health insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh. Under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme, patients can get free treatment at empanelled private and government hospitals.

8. The government noted that the premiums for children of the Ayushman Bharat Scheme will be paid by PM CARES. The premium amount for these children till the age of 18 years will be paid by PM CARES.

How to apply online for Ayushman Bharat scheme?

You can check your eligibility on Ayushman App or the official Ayushman Bharat portal: https://beneficiary.nha.gov.in/

How to apply offline for Ayushman Bharat scheme?

Visit the nearest Common Service Centre. You can also visit Ayushman Mitra in an empanelled hospital. Provide your Aadhaar card and Ration Card details. The operator will check your eligibility and complete e-KYC process.