Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY to Cover Senior Citizens Above 70

Recently the Indian government has announced that senior citizens aged 70 and above to get free treatment up to 5 lakhs annually under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY). Kudos to the Indian government for introducing this scheme thus it is very important for public healthcare for India.

Its main priority is to benefit approximately 4.5 crore families with 6 crore senior citizens by granting 5 lakh rupees a free health care insurance cover on a family basis. Senior citizen of age 70 and above irrespective of their socio-economic background are eligible to avail benefits of AB PM-JAY.

However, AB PM-JAY also known as Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana is the world’s largest publicly funded health assurance scheme, it provides a health cover of Rs.5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization. Meanwhile, under this scheme all members of eligible families irrespective of age are covered under the scheme.

Subsequently, with the expansion of cover to senior citizens of the age of 70 years and above, families that are already covered under AB PM-JAY will get an additional top-up cover up to Rs.5 lakh. While, the Ayushman Bharat scheme was all about meeting the universal health coverage of an Indian citizen, whereas this scheme is the first ever age cohort to receive complete health coverage.

Understanding Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY

Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) is the world’s largest publicly funded health assurance scheme introduced by the Government of India in 2018, providing healthcare coverage of Rs.5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization to 55 core people, corresponding to 12.34 crore families.

This scheme is available to all the eligible families in India irrespective of age, initially 10.74 crore poor and vulnerable families comprising the bottom 40 percent of India’s population were covered under the scheme. However, taking the mission ahead, AB PM-JAY would now provide free healthcare coverage to senior citizens aged 70 years and above of Rs.5 lakh across the country.

Are All 70-year-olds Eligible for AB PM-JAY?

Yes, every senior citizen whose age is 70 years and above irrespective of their socio-economic background or status is eligible to avail of this AB PM-JAY scheme. The senior citizen from a family who is already covered under AB PM-JAY will get an additional (Shared) top-up cover up to Rs.5 lakh per year for themselves only.

On the other hand, senior citizens who are already availing of benefits from other public health insurance schemes like CGHS (Central Government Health Scheme), ECHS (Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme, CAPF (Ayushman Central Armed Police Force) have a choice to stick with the existing scheme or choose to opt for AB PM-JAY. The Government of India has given complete discretion upon the eligible conditions to choose the suitable scheme for themselves. 

Additionally, senior citizens of age 70 years and above, who have obtained private health insurance policies or the Employees State Insurance Scheme are also eligible to obtain the AB PM-JAY scheme. It is recommended to buy insurance from a company that has a legitimate insurance company license provided they are chosen after complete verifications and information.

Does The AB PM-JAY Scheme Cover Every Senior Citizen in a Family?

Well, in this case, the government of India has announced that the health coverage of Rs.5 lakh under the AB PM-JAY Scheme shall be shared by the eligible beneficiaries of a family. For example, if one family has two senior citizens, then an amount of Rs.5 lakh from the AB PM-JAY Scheme will be shared between them only. The main objective behind this scheme of health coverage under Ayushman Bharat is to ensure accessible, affordable, and top-quality healthcare facilities for every single Indian.

Note- Before buying any insurance policies, one may take the assistance of an insurance broker, who holds an insurance broker license and acts as a middleman between the insurance company and customers looking to buy an insurance policy.

Costing To Roll Out This AB PM-JAY Scheme for Senior Citizens

The initial budget for the AB PM-JAY Scheme is Rs. 3,437 crores. Being a demand-driven scheme, its coverage will expand as the need increases across India’s population. The state governments are expected to fund 40% of the scheme, while the central government will cover the remaining cost. For states in hilly regions and the Northeast, the central government will bear 90% of the expense. Other details will be worked out at the implementation stage after the final decision by the government.

Experts estimate that expanding the scheme to cover all citizens aged 70 and above would be more costly than covering the poorest 40% across all age groups. This is due to the higher healthcare needs of the elderly, which drive up the overall costs more than focusing on economically vulnerable groups.

Conclusion

This scheme under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY) has decided to expand the scheme covering senior citizens aged 70 years and above, providing health coverage of Rs 5 Lakh to senior citizen(s) to each Indian family. However, this extension of AB PM-JAY is a progressive move towards universal healthcare coverage, aiming to provide high-quality, affordable medical care to India’s elderly population and reinforcing the country’s commitment to public health.

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