2 Years of Ayushman Vay Vandana Initiative

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Key takeaways

The Ayushman Vay Vandana scheme offers ₹5 lakh annual health cover to all senior citizens aged 70 years and above, regardless of income.
Elderly citizens in households already under AB PM-JAY get an exclusive ₹5 lakh extra top-up cover every year.
In two years, the scheme approved 23.46 lakh hospital admissions totaling ₹5,668.80 crore in treatment value.
The National Health Authority (NHA) implements the program using mandatory Aadhaar-based e-KYC on the Ayushman App.

The Ayushman Vay Vandana scheme completed two full years of implementation.
It recorded 23.46 lakh approved hospital admissions worth ₹5,668.80 crore by October 2026.

The government launched this initiative on 29th October 2024 to expand health benefits.
It extends the Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) to all senior citizens aged 70 years and older regardless of income.
The National Health Authority (NHA) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare manages the execution of this health program.
The scheme offers health cover up to ₹5 lakh per family every year for secondary and tertiary hospital care.
This health protection initiative covers around 6 crore senior citizens across 4.5 crore households.
Senior citizens aged 70 years and above in families already under AB PM-JAY receive an extra ₹5 lakh top-up cover annually for their personal use.
Eligible seniors must complete Aadhaar-based e-KYC to obtain a unique Ayushman Vay Vandana Card.
Seniors can complete their enrolment online through the Ayushman App or the official AB PM-JAY portal.
Elderly citizens using schemes like CGHS, ECHS, or CAPF can choose to stay with their current plan or switch to AB PM-JAY.
Senior citizens holding private health insurance or Employees' State Insurance (ESI) can also access benefits under this scheme.
This program promotes cashless treatment, cuts out-of-pocket spending, and supports dignity for elderly citizens.

The initiative sanctioned 23.46 lakh hospital treatments valued at ₹5,668.80 crore in two years.
Eye doctors performed 4.71 lakh cataract surgeries, which made up 20.1% of total treatments.
Patients used the scheme for around 2.90 lakh chronic haemodialysis procedures.
Heart procedures like Percutaneous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty (PTCA) saw the highest spending at nearly ₹649 crore.
Hospitals treated major medical conditions including total knee replacements, COPD exacerbations, fever, and acute kidney failure.

The central government introduced AB PM-JAY in 2018 to offer affordable treatment to vulnerable families.
It provides a government-funded health assurance cover up to ₹5 lakh per family each year for secondary and tertiary medical care.