Ayushman enrolments see dip as private hospitals back off over rates, delays: Report
New Delhi: Empanelment of hospitals under the Ayushman Bharat-PM Jan Arogya Yojana has reportedly dropped significantly, from an average of 316 hospitals per month in 2024 to just 111 per month in 2025, as of April.
Data shared by the National Health Authority (NHA), as cited by Times of India on Monday, revealed that only 443 hospitals were empanelled under the AB-PMJAY across India over the first four months of 2025—161 in January, 187 in February, 40 in March, and 55 in April. The latest update for May shows just 20 hospitals were added to the scheme.
The significant drop has raised concerns among healthcare associations, who point to low package rates and delayed payments as the primary reasons for the waning interest from the private sector, especially among large corporate hospital chains.
However, a senior official from the NHA, the body responsible for implementing AB-PMJAY, sought to downplay the drop. “Empanelment is taking place and that some of the new empanelments may not have been updated as they were migrating to a new system,” TOI quoted him as saying.
The Indian Medical Association has also weighed in, urging the government to raise package rates to make treatment under the scheme more sustainable. "The rates should be raised to at least Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) level," the news outlet quoted an IMA office-bearer as saying.
According to Minister of State for Health Prataprao Jadhav, 609 private hospitals have voluntarily opted out of AB-PMJAY since 2018. "The reasons for hospitals voluntarily opting out include empanelment only for Covid period, hospitals were closed or non-functional, changes in hospital entity, hospital relocated, ongoing reconstruction or renovation, unavailability of specialist doctors, voluntary withdrawal from scheme, package rates, opting out due to certain treatment packages reserved for public hospitals only (Chhattisgarh and Gujarat), and no referral from public hospitals (Karnataka)," he said.
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Man arrested with Rs 2.54-crore heroin in Mumbai
Mumbai (PTI): Police have arrested a man and seized over 500 grams of heroin worth Rs 2.54 crore in the illicit market from him in Mumbai, officials said on Friday.
The police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) made the drug seizure in Santacruz in the western suburbs. The operation was conducted by the Kandivali unit of the ANC on Thursday as part of a special crackdown against drug trafficking in the area, they said.
Acting on specific inputs, an ANC team conducted a raid in Santacruz (East) and intercepted a man. During a search, the team recovered 508 grams of high-grade heroin from his possession, an official said.
The seized contraband, a highly addictive, opioid drug derived from morphine, is estimated to be worth Rs 2.54 crore in the international market, he informed.
Following the seizure, a case was registered against the man under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and he was formally placed under arrest in the early hours of Friday.
The police are currently investigating the source of the drug and trying to identify the intended recipients of the consignment, he said.
