Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Dr Mansukh Mandaviya on Sunday inaugurated the two days long Arogya Manthan 2022 programme, Arogya Manthan marks the completion of 4 years of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) and 1 year of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM). 

Highlighting the PMJAY beneficiaries as the most important stakeholder in the largest global public health insurance scheme, Mandaviya stated that over 19 crore Ayushman Cards have been made in the country spanning its coverage in 33 States/UTs, and more than 24 crore ABHA numbers have also been generated. "This reflects an important milestone in the digitization of health records in the country," he said. He further informed that the current rate of making 4.5 lakh cards per day will be increased to making 10 lakh Ayushman Cards everyday.

He said the Government’s focus is to make health services reach the person at the end of the delivery chain, enabled by technology.  Dr. Mandaviya stated that PM-JAY has been successful in bridging the gap between rich and poor in terms of accessibility of healthcare services in the country.

Addressing the gathering, Union Minister for Railways, Communications, Electronics & IT Ashwini Vaishnaw said that with the interplay of Information Technology and Health, the vision of Honourable Prime Minister  of making healthcare accessible in the country can be achieved. He added that every village in the country will be connected through high speed optical fibre in the next few years which will ensure connectivity and continuous health access to all. Shri Vaishnaw also highlighted that the Government is making adequate legal framework towards safeguarding the data of the health beneficiaries.

Dr. Bharati Pravin Pawar, Union Minister of State for Health & Family Welfare stated that the country is not only pioneering the adoption of technology in health services but also ensuring that it is implemented at the grass root level. She added that the Government is working holistically to ensure the best of healthcare services to its citizens. Dr. Pawar lauded the completion of 4 years of PM-JAY and 1 year of ABDM and said that it marks an important milestone in the direction of Universal Health Coverage. She said that ABDM will have multi-fold impact in digitizing the health infrastructure in the country. 

The Union Health Minister launched several new initiatives including Health Claims Exchange (HCX), National e-Rupi Portal and Roadmap for Digitisation. The digital versions of Annual Report for NHA, Coffee Table Book and Best Practices Booklet were also unveiled. The publications can be viewed at pmjay.gov.in.

Mandaviya inaugurated the "Digital Health Expo" that saw enthusiastic participation from digital health innovators like NIC (showcasing eHospital and Aarogya Setu), C-DAC, Karnataka Government, Medical Devices start-ups from Vizag, AWS India, Google, Microsoft, Tata Medical and Diagnostics, Reliance Digital Health, Hitachi MGRM, Paytm, Bajaj Finserv Health among others from government as well as private sector.