The Union cabinet on Saturday approved the national roll-out of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) under which citizens will be able to create their unique account numbers. The Rs 1,600 crore scheme will enable beneficiaries to link their digital health records.
“This will enable creation of health records for individuals across various healthcare providers, and improve clinical decision making by healthcare providers. The mission will improve equitable access to quality healthcare by encouraging use of technologies such as telemedicine and enabling national portability of health services,” the cabinet note said. These account numbers will be called ABHA (Ayushman Bharat Health Account).
According to officials, digital health solutions across healthcare ecosystem have proven to be of immense benefit over the years, with CoWIN, Arogya Setu and eSanjeevani demonstrating the role technology plays in enabling access to healthcare. However, there is a need to integrate such solutions for care and effective utilization of resources.
Not only will ABDM facilitate evidence-based decision making for effective public health interventions, but it will also catalyse innovation and generate employment across the healthcare ecosystem, the officials said.
The government had earlier run a pilot of ABDM in six union territories of Ladakh, Chandigarh, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep. During the pilot, digital sandbox was created in which more than 774 partner solutions are undergoing integration.
As on February 24, a total of 17,33,69,087 Ayushman Bharat Health Accounts have been created and 10,114 doctors and 17,319 health facilities have been registered in ABDM.
