The government told the Lok Sabha that 1.87 lakh Ayushman Arogya Mandirs are operational, alongside hospitalisation cover under AB PM-JAY and free drugs and diagnostics programmes.
The Union government has outlined a combination of primary healthcare, hospitalisation cover, free medicines and diagnostic services being used to reduce out-of-pocket expenditure on healthcare, according to a written reply in the Lok Sabha on 7 August 2026.
Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Anupriya Patel said 1.87 lakh Ayushman Arogya Mandirs have been operationalised across the country to provide comprehensive primary healthcare services.
The centres are intended to provide preventive, promotive, curative, palliative and rehabilitative services covering areas including reproductive and child health, communicable diseases and non-communicable diseases.
The government is also implementing the National Free Drugs Service Initiative and Free Diagnostics Service Initiative to improve access to essential medicines and diagnostic services through public health facilities. Financial support is provided to states and Union Territories for essential medicines at different levels of the public healthcare system.
Under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY), eligible families receive health cover of ₹5 lakh per family annually for secondary and tertiary hospitalisation. The government said the scheme covers more than 12 crore economically vulnerable families, while participating states and Union Territories can expand the beneficiary base using their own resources.
AB PM-JAY has also been extended to people aged 70 years and above irrespective of socio-economic status. According to the parliamentary reply, around 6 crore senior citizens belonging to 4.5 crore families are covered under the expansion through the Ayushman Vay Vandana Card.
Other affordability measures cited by the government include the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana for lower-cost generic medicines and Affordable Medicines and Reliable Implants for Treatment pharmacies at participating hospitals and institutions.
The initiatives form part of a broader public-health framework that includes the National Health Mission, AB PM-JAY, Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission and Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana.
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