The National Health Agency (NHA), the apex body for implementation of the Centre's ambitious Ayushman Bharat-National Health Protection Scheme, today launched a formal process to empanel public and private hospitals to achieve universal health coverage.
The objective is to improve access for the most vulnerable and unreached sections of the population and holistically address healthcare by covering prevention, promotion and ambulatory care at primary, secondary and tertiary levels.
Speaking on this development, Dr Indu Bhushan, CEO of the NHA and Ayushman Bharat, urged all the hospitals and healthcare service providers to maintain the motto of service to mankind and come forward to join Ayushman Bharat, India's healthcare revolution, in spirit and deed.
The government's flagship scheme aims to provide a coverage of Rs 5 lakh per family annually and benefit more than 10 crore poor families.
I call upon each one of you to partner with the mission through the empanelment process initiated today to enhance the accessibility for the people who need it most. I also request all the states and union territories to help us in garnering the support of hospitals and healthcare providers for this path-breaking mission, Bhushan said.
Dr Dinesh Arora, Deputy CEO, Ayushman Bharat, said that the aim is to provide financial protection to 10.74 crore deprived rural families and identified occupational categories of urban workers' families as per the latest Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) data.
We invite all private and super-speciality hospitals across India for empanelment as they play critical and indispensable role in this mission. We are also making every effort to ensure that the empanelment process is conducted in a transparent, time-bound and non-partisan manner based on specific criteria, eligibility and guidelines, Arora said.
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Following the announcement today, the State Health Agencies (SHA) through State Empanelment Committees (SEC) will start empanelling private and public health care service providers and facilities in states and union territories as per the given guidelines.
At the ground level, district, sub-district and block level workshops will be held to brief details of empanelment criteria, packages, processes and address any queries. Following the workshops, hospitals interested to get empanelled can do so by visiting the webportal, www.abnhpm.gov.in , where complete details of the process can be accessed.
The State Health Agencies shall ensure empanelment within stipulated timelines for quick implementation, if the applicants meet the essential criteria as defined for general or specialty care facilities.
Over and above the essential criteria, facilities undertaking defined speciality packages are required to certain additional eligibility requirements. Specific criteria are outlined for cardiology and cardio-thoracic vascular services, cancer care, neurosurgery, burns, plastic and reconstructive surgery, neonatal/paediatric surgery, polytrauma, nephrology and urology surgery.
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