The government launched the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission to build a comprehensive digital health ecosystem for the country. The mission aims to develop the backbone necessary to support the integrated digital health infrastructure of the country. It provides for assisted and offline mode for the creation of Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) for areas with limited internet connectivity or hardware. Various applications such as the ABHA app and the Aarogya Setu have also been launched. The mission aims to bridge the gap between different stakeholders of the healthcare ecosystem digitally.
The flagship scheme was launched with an outlay of ₹1,600 crore for 5 years from 2021-2022 to 2025-2026.
Till February 29, 2024, more than 56.67 crore Ayushman Bharat Health Accounts (ABHA) have been created and over 34.89 crore health records have been linked. The ABHA app is a digital repository of a person’s medical records. Through the app, the users can also connect with the healthcare professionals registered on it. Around 2.35 lakh health facilities have been verified on the Health Facility Registry under ABDM. Of these medical facilities, 69,633 are private, and over 1.66 lakh are government. Moreover, there are over 2.84 lakh health professionals attached to the scheme.
The Healthcare Professionals Registry is a comprehensive repository of registered and verified healthcare practitioners across India. ABDM empowers the registry to onboard medical professionals onto India’s digital health ecosystem and connects patients to healthcare providers.
ABDM has also taken strides in achieving gender parity. As of February 29, 2024, as many as 27.73 crore women and 29.11 crore men have benefitted from ABHA.
Government welfare schemes like the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission are not only helping to bridge the digital divide but are also helping people get access to healthcare in an efficient, accessible, inclusive, affordable, timely, and safe manner.