Ayushman Bharat Scheme: A Solace Decision for the Poor? Insurance limit of Ayushman Bharat will be doubled

• A historic improvement is expected in Ayushman Bharat
• Insurance limit of Ayushman Bharat will be doubled
• Health cover likely to increase to 10 lakhs

Ayushman Bharat Scheme: As Budget 2026 approaches, expectations are high for Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) in the health sector. The government currently provides a health cover of Rs 5 lakh per family, but a proposal to double this amount due to rising medical expenses is under discussion. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is expected to announce a significant increase in the health budget in February. This decision will not only provide relief to the poor but also strengthen the healthcare infrastructure of the country.

Ayushman Bharat is planning to increase the insurance limit from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh. The main objective of the change is to help poor families afford treatment for critical illnesses and expensive organ transplants. If the proposal is approved in the budget, it will be the biggest ever reform of the country’s health security system.

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An additional top-up cover of Rs 5 lakh was recently introduced for senior citizens above 70 years. This means that the effective insurance cover for families with elderly members has already reached 10 lakhs. The possibility of extending this benefit to other categories or to the entire family is being examined in Budget 2026.

9,406 crore has been earmarked for this scheme in the Budget Estimates for 2025-26, which is a 24% increase over the previous year. This amount is estimated to exceed 10,000 crore in the coming budget to accommodate the growing beneficiary base. The increased funding will not only increase the sum insured but also enable the paneling of more private hospitals.

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Due to rising inflation and the use of new technologies in the medical field, the cost of operations and medicines has increased significantly. The current limit of Rs 5 lakh is often insufficient for complex surgeries or long-term treatments like cancer. Keeping this in mind, the National Health Authority (NHA) is assessing the financial burden of increasing the cover.

States like Chhattisgarh and Punjab have already taken steps to increase it to 10 lakhs. The Punjab government has announced to implement this increased coverage from 22 January 2026, which will provide additional relief to the existing beneficiaries. Due to this success, the central government is planning to implement it uniformly across the country.