Ayushman Bharat (PM-JAY)

What you get

• Up to ₹5 lakh per family per year, shared by everybody in the family.
• Cashless at the counter — an empanelled hospital claims from the scheme, not from you.
• It covers the admission: the bed, surgery, tests, medicines during the stay, and a set period of follow-up after discharge.
• Pre-existing conditions are covered from the day the card is active.

Who it is for

• Families on the government’s eligibility list, drawn from the national deprivation survey — most of the trades on this platform fall inside it, but it is a list and not a rule of thumb.
• Senior citizens aged 70 and above are covered as a separate route, whatever the family income.
• Do not decide by eye. Check the number, because the answer is yes or no and it is free to ask.

What to take with you

• Aadhaar card
• Ration card, if you have one — it is what the list is often matched against
• The mobile number linked to your Aadhaar, and the phone itself for the OTP

How to check and apply

1. 1Send your Aadhaar or ration card number to 14555, or call the same number — it answers in Hindi and tells you whether your family is on the list.
2. 2Or open beneficiary.nha.gov.in and enter the mobile number linked to your Aadhaar.
3. 3A Common Service Centre (CSC) will check it and make the card for you; there is a small government service charge for making it.
4. 4The Ayushman Mitra desk inside any empanelled hospital can check on the spot — useful if somebody is already being admitted.