India’s digital health ID system surpasses 900 million accounts

India’s digital health identity program has surpassed 900 million registered accounts, marking a major milestone for one of the world’s largest digital health infrastructures.

The National Health Authority (NHA) announced that the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) has issued more than 900 million Ayushman Bharat Health Accounts (ABHAs), extending digital health identity coverage to a significant share of the country’s population.

The ABHA system functions as a foundational layer for identity management within India’s evolving healthcare framework. Every account consists of a unique 14-digit digital identifier. This enables citizens to securely link, access and share aggregate health records across providers, subject to explicit user consent.

According to data provided by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, cumulative account registration stood at 147 million at the close of 2021. This expanded to 304 million in 2022, 506 million in 2023, and 722 million in 2024. Momentum sustained through 2025, reaching 845 million accounts before eclipsing the 900 million landmark.

The NMC in March directed that all medical colleges must generate and issue patient IDs to all those seeking their services. The directive called for the medical colleges to create a unique ABHA ID when issued either to outpatients, inpatients or those in need of emergency health services.

The milestone highlights the growing role of sector-specific digital identities within India’s broader digital public infrastructure strategy. Built on Aadhaar-based identity verification and consent-driven data sharing, ABHA is designed to enable citizens to access healthcare services while maintaining control over how their medical information is shared.

“The creation of over 90 crore [900 million] ABHAs reflects the growing participation of citizens, states, UTs and ecosystem partners in the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission,” said Dr. Sunil Kumar Barnwal, CEO of the National Health Authority.

“ABHA is an important step towards empowering citizens with secure, consent-based access to their own health information. As adoption deepens, ABHA will enable continuity of care, reduce dependence on physical records and support a more seamless, transparent and citizen-centric healthcare delivery system.”

Geographically, the expansion is supported by substantial regional deployment. The state of Uttar Pradesh leads national implementation with over 153 million registrations. It is followed by Rajasthan and Maharashtra at 71 million accounts each, Bihar at 63 million, and West Bengal at 59 million.

The framework has achieved 100 percent population saturation across several territories, including the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Ladakh, Lakshadweep, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. Among larger administrative regions, Andhra Pradesh reports a 98.5 percent saturation metric, followed closely by Odisha at 91.9 percent, Chandigarh at 90.8 percent, and Rajasthan at 89.7 percent. Jammu and Kashmir, Tripura, and Telangana have all surpassed 75 percent saturation.

Female users account for 49.75 percent of registrants, suggesting broad adoption across demographic groups. The government says the platform supports healthcare use cases including maternal care, immunization tracking and long-term health record management, while helping extend digital health services to rural and underserved populations.

To create an ABHA account, users can authenticate with Aadhaar using either a one-time password or biometric verification, while registration is also available through QR-based processes. In 2025, Google Wallet added support for ABHA credentials, extending the reach of India’s digital health identity ecosystem.

Article Topics

Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) ID  |  digital ID  |  healthcare  |  identity verification  |  India  |  patient identification