West Bengal Set For Ayushman Bharat Rollout, State To Sign MoU With NHA On June 8

The Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) is set to be implemented in West Bengal. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the government of West Bengal and the National Health Authority (NHA) is scheduled for June 8, 2026, to formalise the partnership to implement the scheme. 

With the implementation of AB PM-JAY in West Bengal, this public sector healthcare scheme will have a nationwide network of hospitals offering services under the scheme. Until now, the state has been running the ‘Swasthya Sathi’ state government health scheme that was launched in 2016 by the previous state government. The scheme is now expected to be merged with the Ayushman Bharat Yojana (ABY) in a phased manner. ABY provides health insurance coverage of Rs 5 lakh per year to eligible beneficiaries to cover secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation expenses.

Ayushman Bharay Yojana (ABY) 

ABY was launched in 2018 and is aimed at protecting eligible beneficiaries from the unexpected exorbitant expenditure on medical procedures, which often drives families into penury.

Under the scheme, individuals from the economically weaker section of society, selected based on the Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) of 2011, are the primary beneficiaries. However, since October 2024, the scheme has been extended to senior citizens; while those aged 70 years and above have also been brought under the scheme’s coverage.

The eligible beneficiaries can avail of more than 1,900 treatment procedures under the scheme, including cardiology, oncology, neurology, orthopaedics, organ transplant, and knee replacement procedures, among others.

There are a total of 36,236 hospitals empanelled under the scheme, according to data from NHA. This comprises 19,664 government hospitals and 16,572 private hospitals. With the scheme’s implementation across the country, a patient from one state can get the treatment in another state as well, while still being covered for the benefits. 

A few days ago, the West Bengal health department had asked the medical facilities providers in the state to sign up for ABY. The state department held a discussion and provided them with tutorials about how to navigate the Web portal and empanel themselves.

As the MoU is scheduled to be signed today, the state will officially be included as an ABY provider.

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