Ayushman Bharat: A Grand Promise or a Deeply Flawed Policy?

 Ayushman Bharat: A Grand Promise or a Deeply Flawed Policy?

The Modi government’s Ayushman Bharat Healthcare Policy has been widely promoted as a revolutionary step in healthcare, offering coverage of 5 lakh rupees per year to every Indian citizen. But is this policy as effective as it sounds, or is it just another grand promise that fails in execution? The government’s website for Ayushman Bharat primarily mentions senior citizens over 70 years old, but many claim the scheme is available to all citizens free of cost. For the sake of argument, let’s assume that the scheme is meant for everyone and examine why a seemingly good idea turns into a flawed policy.

Before the Modi government came to power, healthcare policies in India focused on building public healthcare infrastructure, ensuring affordable services were available to all citizens. However, once the Modi government took charge, the cost of healthcare skyrocketed. Essential drug prices increased by as much as 100 times their previous rates. India was already behind in developing its healthcare system, and this sudden inflation created a massive opportunity for private players to enter the industry. As a result, there was an explosion of private hospitals, many of which are owned by politicians and business elites.

This is where the Ayushman Bharat Policy becomes problematic. Private hospitals, aware that the government has promised large payouts, exploit the scheme by adding unnecessary tests, procedures, and charges without informing patients. Since the bill is sent directly to the government, the system is open to unchecked fraud. The 2022 CAG report, commissioned by the Modi government itself, exposed major abuse under this scheme. According to the report, even dead patients were recorded as receiving treatment under Ayushman Bharat, and the government paid for these fake services. This isn’t speculation—it has been reported by The Times of India in the following article:

Ghost patients and dead beneficiaries: CAG report exposes Ayushman shockers in MP

At the same time, there are multiple videos online of people claiming that many private hospitals refuse to accept the Ayushman Bharat Card—especially those that are not owned by politicians—because the government fails to reimburse them for the promised amounts. Having personally experienced the Indian healthcare system, it is evident that there is no accountability in how these claims are processed. Clinics can hire unqualified staff, sign fraudulent claims, and bill the government for services that were never provided—all without consequences. The Times of India report confirms that this systemic abuse is widespread.

A comparison with the AAP model of healthcare governance in Delhi and Punjab offers an interesting contrast. Instead of throwing money at private players, the AAP government focused on building physical healthcare infrastructure through Mohalla Clinics, new hospitals, and modernized healthcare facilities. This public-driven approach has yielded clear benefits:

• Job creation through the hiring of doctors, lab technicians, and medical staff
• Accessible healthcare with free consultations, diagnostic tests, and medicines
• Cost control by regulating drug prices, test costs, and consultation fees, preventing artificial inflation of healthcare costs

For a system to succeed in India, it must match the scale of the growing population. Delhi and Punjab alone have a combined population of over 50 million, which would require 5,000 Mohalla Clinics—each serving about 10,000 people. Staffing these clinics would create 50,000 direct healthcare jobs, including 15,000 doctors, 10,000 lab technicians, and 25,000 other medical staff.

Now, let’s talk about cost efficiency. If the Ayushman Bharat Policy were fully implemented for 50 million people in Delhi and Punjab, it would require an astronomical budget of 25 lakh crore rupees—money the Indian government does not have. Meanwhile, a fully implemented AAP healthcare model would cost around 25,000 crore rupees, which is only 1/100th of the estimated cost of Ayushman Bharat. The AAP model also ensures that healthcare money circulates in the economy faster, instead of going into corporate hospital chains looking to cut costs and maximize profits.

Granted that under the Ayushman Bharat scheme not everyone will go to the hospital or clinic for healthcare services, but the opportunity for these private hospitals to rig the system is huge. The policy incentivizes fraud, encourages private hospitals to inflate bills, and allows healthcare providers to game the system for profit. Worse, the government simply does not have the money to cover the costs, which is why many hospitals reject the Ayushman Bharat Card altogether.

If Ayushman Bharat were truly a universal healthcare policy, it should focus on strengthening public hospitals, regulating drug prices, and preventing price manipulation by private healthcare providers. Instead, it has become a subsidy for wealthy hospital owners, while leaving actual patients struggling to find facilities that accept the scheme.

This is not a healthcare revolution—it’s just another false promise sold to voters, ensuring that corruption thrives while ordinary citizens continue to suffer. The real question is: when will India focus on healthcare policies that actually serve the people, rather than enriching a handful of business elites?