Ayushman Bharat health insurance for senior citizens: Eligibility, coverage details, costs. All your queries answered

The Union government has expanded the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY), covering all senior citizens aged 70 and above, regardless of their income. This expansion aims to provide health insurance coverage of ₹5 lakh per family per year to approximately 4.5 crore families, benefiting around six crore senior citizens.
 

Ayushman Bharat health insurance for senior citizens: All you need to know

1)Eligibility and benefits

Regardless of socio-economic status, every senior citizen aged 70 or older is eligible for the AB PM-JAY benefits. They will receive a new, distinctive card to access the scheme.

2)For those already covered under AB PM-JAY

Senior citizens aged 70 and above who are part of families already covered under AB PM-JAY will receive an additional top-up cover of up to ₹5 lakh per year specifically for themselves. This amount is separate from the coverage shared with younger family members.

3)For those with other public health insurance schemes

Seniors aged 70 and above who are currently benefiting from other public health schemes like the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS), Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS), or Ayushman Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) have the choice to either stick with their existing coverage or switch to AB PM-JAY.

4)For private health insurance holders

Yes, it has been clarified that senior citizens of 70 years and above under private health insurance policies will be eligible to avail of benefits under AB PM-JAY, said Pankaj Mathpal, MD & CEO at Optima Money Managers.

5)How it works

Eligible senior citizens will be issued a distinct card under AB PM-JAY, which they can use to access their health insurance coverage. If multiple senior citizens in the same family are covered, each one will benefit from a ₹5 lakh annual coverage.

AB PM-JAY remains the world’s largest publicly funded health assurance scheme, offering comprehensive secondary and tertiary care hospitalization coverage to 55 crore individuals or 12.34 crore families. The scheme includes all eligible family members, regardless of age.

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