What is the difference between the Ayushman Bharat Card and the Health ID card?

Posted on: Dec 5, 2023 | 3 mins | Written by: HDFC ERGO Team

What is the difference between the Ayushman Bharat Card and the Health ID card?

The health infrastructure in India is always under immense pressure, and the pandemic highlighted the many areas that require drastic improvement. To make healthcare more accessible to all sections of society, the government keeps launching various schemes. The Ayushman Bharat Card is also one such initiative. But the introduction of a new scheme also brings along with it many queries and doubts. For instance, is the health ID card the same, or does it serve a different purpose? Well, let’s try and clear up this confusion.

What is the Ayushman Bharat Card?

Ayushman Bharat Card is given to beneficiaries of Ayushman Bharat Yojana, also known as Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY), to avail healthcare services in government and private hospitals. The Government scheme was launched in 2018 to make healthcare affordable and accessible for the economically backward sections of society. Beneficiaries can avail of cashless treatment at any of the network hospitals with an Ayushman ID card.

What is the ABHA Health ID Card?

ABHA (i.e., Ayushman Bharat Health Account), launched under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission of the Government of India, is a repository storing the health records of individuals. To access the account from anywhere in India, every person is allotted an ABHA health ID card with a 14-digit unique identification number. The card stores your medical history and health record, including diagnostic tests, lab reports, consultations, prescriptions, etc. With ABHA number, you can safely access your health records and easily share them with doctors and insurance providers without having to carry your medical files each time you visit the hospital.

Difference Between the ABHA Card vs the Ayushman Card

Every ABHA beneficiary gets an ABHA card with a 14-digit unique identification number, storing the medical records in one place. Anyone can apply for an ABHA card, irrespective of income. However, the Ayushman card is meant only for the economically weaker sections of society. Let’s take a look at ABHA health ID vs Ayushman card:

Parameters	ABHA Card	Ayushman Card
Purpose	ABHA card digitally stores all health records in one place, making it easy to access and share.	Ayushman card is issued to beneficiaries of the Ayushman Bharat Yojana to avail of cashless treatment in network hospitals.
Eligibility	Al Indian nationals.	The health scheme is meant for the economically weaker sections of society.
Benefits	Unique 14-digit identification number to access medical records.	Cashless hospitalisation.
Coverage	Access to health records from anywhere.	Every family gets up to Rs 5 lakh per year.
Enrolment	Voluntary	Mandatory for eligible individuals.

Need for Integrating ABHA Card with Health Insurance Plan

A healthcare plan provides financial security against unexpected medical expenses, making quality healthcare affordable and accessible. With medical inflation, any health emergency can drain your savings if you are not covered by health insurance. A healthcare plan can ease your stress by taking care of the medical expenses, and if you get treated in a network hospital, you can avail of cashless treatment.

By integrating the ABHA card with a health insurance plan, insurance companies will have access to the policyholder’s medical records, expenses, lab tests, etc., and it will be easy to get the claims settled. The policyholder need not provide physical documents to the insurer. The ABHA card will safely and securely store and manage the medical records of patients digitally.

Conclusion

Both the healthcare initiatives of the Government of India are meant to provide better healthcare services, but each has a different purpose. While Ayushman Bharat Yojana offers affordable healthcare services only to the economically weaker sections of society, the ABHA card is a centralised repository to store and manage the health records of anyone, irrespective of economic background. If you are not eligible for the Ayushman Bharat Yojana or any other healthcare scheme, make sure you buy a family floater or an individual health insurance policy to stay financially covered. You can opt for add-on covers like critical illness insurance, maternity insurance, etc., based on your health condition and requirements.

FAQs

1. What are the eligibility criteria to get enrolled in Ayushman Bharat Yojana?

Ayushman Bharat Yojana serves as a health insurance scheme launched by the Government of India for the economically weaker sections of society.

2. What is the difference between the Ayushman Bharat card and the ABHA health ID card?

Ayushman Bharat card provides healthcare services to Ayushman Bharat Yojana beneficiaries. The beneficiaries can avail of cashless treatment in government and private hospitals with the help of an Ayushman card. On the other hand, the ABHA health card has a 14-digit unique identification number to manage and store your medical records digitally in one place.

3. Is it compulsory to enrol for an ABHA card?

No, it is not compulsory.

Disclaimer: The above information is for illustrative purposes only. For more details, please refer to the policy wordings and prospectus before concluding the sales.

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