West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has highlighted the early implementation and reported uptake of the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) in the state. The scheme was introduced in West Bengal after the Assembly elections earlier this year, following a period when the previous Trinamool Congress government had not permitted its implementation.

According to Adhikari, 3.23 crore Ayushman Bharat cards are currently active in West Bengal, providing beneficiaries with financial health coverage of up to Rs 5 lakh. He highlighted the figures in a social media statement issued on Monday afternoon, describing the development as a significant expansion of access to government-supported healthcare across the state.

The Chief Minister also reported that 31,541 hospital admissions have taken place under the scheme so far. Of these, 716 admissions were recorded outside West Bengal. The portability feature of AB PM-JAY allows eligible beneficiaries to access treatment at empanelled hospitals across the country, including patients requiring specialised medical interventions.

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Adhikari highlighted the benefit of nationwide portability for migrant workers and other beneficiaries from West Bengal who may need treatment outside the state. He noted that the scheme has enabled patients to access cashless treatment while reducing the financial burden associated with hospitalisation. The state government has positioned the expansion of the scheme as part of efforts to broaden healthcare access.

The previous Mamata Banerjee-led government had relied on the state’s Swastha Sathi health insurance scheme and maintained that there was no need for the Centre’s Ayushman Bharat programme in West Bengal. After the change in government, the new administration moved to implement AB PM-JAY as one of its early decisions, marking a shift in the state’s approach to the central healthcare scheme.

The state government has also announced that people who are not eligible for Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY will be covered under the Chief Minister’s Health Insurance Scheme. The coverage under that programme will also be Rs 5 lakh annually, according to the information provided by the Chief Minister.

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