In the current fiscal year, authorized hospital admissions under the Ayushman Bharat - Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) were three and a half times higher in private hospitals in Madhya Pradesh than in public ones.

According to a response from the health ministry in the Lok Sabha on August 5, about 508 accredited hospitals, have treated patients for a total of around Rs 581.083 crore in MP from April to August this year. A treatment value of Rs 166.492 crore has been authorized for about 475 impaneled government health facilities throughout the same period.

To actualize the goal of Universal Health Coverage (UHC), the Government of Indias flagship program, Ayushman Bharat, was introduced in 2018 as proposed by the National Health Policy of 2017.  Since then, private hospitals in MP have received more claims for the authorized value of hospital admissions. In the case of Indore, home to the largest government hospital and the super specialty hospital in the state, private institutions received almost three-fourths of the claim amount under the scheme till last year.

Dr. Ayushman Anurag Choudhary, MP Ayushman CEO, said, "Under the scheme, the people have the choice to visit facilities in any of the public or private sectors. The higher authorized hospital admission in private hospitals is showing that more and more people are going to private hospitals for their treatment.”

According to CMHO Dr. BS Saitya, the scheme offers substantial financial help for cardiac, orthopedic, and ophthalmological care procedures. In the area, several private hospitals specialize in these high-end medical treatments. Because of this, residents in Indore and Bhopal throng private hospitals for such high costing specialized care. (Times of India, Aug 22, 2022)