Odisha to Soon Implement Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission: Health Minister

Within nine months of rollout, Odisha has stood first in the distribution of ABPMJAY cards to eligible beneficiaries and fifth in the generation of Ayushman Vaya Vandana Yojana cards for senior citizens

Odisha will soon implement the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), Health and Family Welfare Minister Mukesh Mahaling said, as the State continues to expand coverage under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jana Arogya Yojana (ABPMJAY).

Within nine months of rollout, Odisha has stood first in the distribution of ABPMJAY cards to eligible beneficiaries and fifth in the generation of Ayushman Vaya Vandana Yojana cards for senior citizens, the minister said while inaugurating a national-level Chintan Shivir on ABPMJAY and ABDM here.

Mahaling said ABPMJAY is now the largest universal healthcare system in the world. He noted that around 80 per cent of the State’s total population of 4.5 crore has been included under the scheme, which has been converged with the Gopabandhu Jana Arogya Yojana.

Calling upon the conference to deliberate on expanding coverage, the minister said discussions were needed on the possibility of provisioning ayurvedic and homeopathic packages under ABPMJAY. He added that Odisha has already initiated the process to implement ABDM along with ABPMJAY as per the prescribed guidelines of the National Health Authority.

Chief Executive Officer of the National Health Authority, Dr Sunil Kumar Barnwal, said the digital platforms of ABPMJAY and ABDM were designed in a manner that allows multiple service delivery systems to be onboarded as and when required.

During the event, the National Health Authority signed three memoranda of understanding, including one with BHASINI for multilingual access to health services, another with the Indian Institute of Sciences for collaborative research, and a third with the National Accreditation Board of Hospitals for maintaining national standards at healthcare facilities.

The event was attended by principal secretaries of health from Rajasthan and Meghalaya, Gayatri Rathore and Sampath Kumar, Odisha Health Secretary Aswathy S, Managing Director of ABDM Kiran Gopal Vaska, and senior officials from 27 States and seven Union Territories.

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