Digital health ID issuance reaches 500M people in India
In India, under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), the National Health Authority (NHA) has granted Ayushman Bharat health account (ABHA) ID numbers to 500 million people, according to an announcement from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Patients can generate an account using their Aadhaar digital ID card.
Over 15 million patients have already used ABHA digital ID numbers for expedited outpatient registration. Users can scan a QR code to instantly register and share their profiles with hospitals where they are seeking care.
Five million people have also downloaded ABHA personal health records app – available on iOS and Android – for online access to their records. Over 330 million health records have been linked to patient ABHAs as of December 22nd 2023.
Healthcare service providers and facilities can also be added to ABDM’s healthcare registries. Over 260,000 doctors and nurses are on the healthcare professionals registry, while 226,000 hospitals, labs, and pharmacies are registered on the health facility registry. Over 56,000 hospitals are already using ABDM systems.
The NHA launched several incentive programs to facilitate uptake of the new system. The digital health incentive scheme gives health facilities and providers incentives to implement systems that use ABHA-linked health records. Smaller facilities in the private sector can be a part of the 100 microsites project that began in July 2023. Currently, 29 microsites are actively using the digital ID system for healthcare services.
“With collective efforts from the industry towards adoption of ABDM, we aim to take the benefits of digital health services to the remotest corners of the country,” said the CEO of NHA, Dr. R.S. Sharma. “As more and more people start using ABHA-based services, we get closer to our goal of making healthcare more accessible and efficient.”
Article Topics
Aadhaar | digital ID | healthcare | identity management | India | patient identification
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