NHA Directs Hospitals, Medical Colleges to Register Patients for ABHA ID
However, the NHA clarified that hospitals cannot refuse treatment to patients who opt not to register for an ABHA ID, as it remains voluntary.
The National Health Authority (NHA) has requested the National Medical Commission (NMC) to instruct all medical colleges and hospitals, both government and private, to register patients for the Ayushman Bharat Digital Health Account (ABHA ID). This initiative aims to enhance healthcare digitization across India.
However, the NHA clarified that hospitals cannot refuse treatment to patients who opt not to register for an ABHA ID, as it remains voluntary.
The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, which was implemented on January 3, ensures the privacy of digital health data.
In its communication to the NMC, the NHA emphasized the importance of creating a joint mechanism to monitor the progress of ABHA implementation and assured full technical support to facilitate this process. The ABHA ID, a 14-digit number, allows patients to access their health records, prescriptions, and consultation details from various healthcare providers.
“National Health Authority, the implementing body of the ABDM assures all requisite technical support to the officials engaged in ABHA/ABHA activities in the medical colleges and their attached medical colleges. It is also requested that if a joint mechanism may be built to review the progress of digitization through ABHA, it will be helpful in the actual implementation,” said Kiran Gopal Vaska, Joint Secretary, NHA and Mission Director, ABDM in a letter to the NMC Secretary (Prof) Dr B Srinivas.
The adoption of ABHA IDs is currently mandated for nearly 700 medical colleges. Despite previous directives for hospitals to register ABHA IDs for patients in OPD, IPD, and emergency departments, implementation has lagged.
The ABHA ID is designed to link healthcare benefits from public health programs to insurance schemes, with over 730 million IDs already issued.
