All You Need to Know about Health ID card Launched by Prime Minister Modi

October 4, 2021 Mutual Fund

The honourable Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, launched the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission on 27th September 2021, via video call, which is a historic initiative in strengthening the health facilities in India. The Health ID cards provided under this campaign will contain the health records of the individuals and it can also be used as a health account of the individual card holder.

Recently, the National Health Authority (NHA) celebrated the third anniversary of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY). On the occasion, Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) was also launched to provide Health ID cards to the citizens of India.

Here are the key highlights:

• In this event, honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated that, "Today we are launching a Mission that has the potential of bringing a revolutionary change in India's health facilities''.

• Countrywide Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission was launched by honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

• The mission will create a seamless online platform that will enable interoperability within the Digital Health Ecosystem.

• Every citizen will receive a digital health ID card that will consist of their health records.

• "Our brothers and sisters living in the remotest villages of the country will get better health facilities, through the launch of this mission. Today, we will go one step further in improving their lives", said the Prime Minister.

Here are few things you should know about the newly launched Health ID card:

• The card will consist of your entire health record such as your medical history, the diseases you had/have, the hospitals you visited, doctors under whom you were treated, the medical tests you had, medicines you used or still using, diagnosis of your reports, your existing test reports and x-rays, discharge summary, etc. The health records will be updated after your consent and would be digitally secured. This can be very helpful when you go for a second opinion or visit a new doctor for your treatment.

• The healthcare service providers will be able to access your Health ID records only after you provide them with your health ID card.

• If you want a particular healthcare provider to have access only to the data relevant to the treatment, you can create multiple Health ID cards. However, it is advisable to use a single Health ID card for all your health concerns, as it serves the purpose of a one-touch-access to your health records.

• To register for a health ID card, you can follow the process of self-registration as mentioned below:

  1. Visit the Health ID web portal of the National Health Authority at healthid.ndhm.gov.in or download an Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) mobile app (Currently available only on Google Playstore).

  2. Click on Register Now button.

  3. Choose your preferred language.

  4. Register with a mobile number or AADHAR Card.

  5. Submit the One-Time-Password (OTP).

  6. Your Health ID will be created once you have submitted the required personal information.

  7. After you receive the Health ID, you are required to create a password to access your Digital Health ID Card in the future.

• Apart from the online registration process, you can visit any public or private healthcare service provider for offline registration.

• Each Health ID cardholder will have a 14 digit unique number. You can create your Health ID by using your personal information such as your AADHAR number or mobile number. While using your AADHAR card for the ID creation, your name, date of birth, gender, mobile number, and address will be captured as per your AADHAR card data with the UIDAI. However, if you do not want to disclose your AADHAR details, you can use your mobile number along with self-declared information.

• Electronic Medical Report will be created for easy access of individuals, doctors, and healthcare service providers.

• The Electronic Medical Reports can be accessed by various health systems and the domain-specific entries will be registered through a Unified Health Interface.

• Currently, the National Health Authority has a network of about 24,000 hospitals. However, as per NDHM, the facility will be available at all public as well as private hospitals.

• Over one lakh unique Health ID cards have been created under the National Digital Health Mission (NDHM).

• This mission has been successfully Piloted for one year in the six union territories:

  – Andaman and Nicobar Island

  – Chandigarh

  – Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu

  – Ladakh

  – Lakshadweep

  – Puducherry

• The application and creation of a Health ID card under the National Digital Health Mission is absolutely free and voluntary.

• National Digital Health Mission ensures the privacy, confidentiality, and security of your health-related personal information.

• An individual can deactivate or reactivate or permanently delete their Health ID anytime in future.

• As of now, there is no such information on whether you can link your health insurance plan to your health ID.

Benefits of Health ID Card for the citizens:

Until now, we have been storing our medical records physically, which carries the risk of losing the documents, damaging them, etc. Moreover, we have to carry all the papers whenever we visit a new doctor.

The newly launched Health Card can benefit us in multiple ways:

• An individual that holds a Health ID card can check the details of doctors along with their qualifications through the Healthcare Professionals Registry (HPR), which is a repository of registered medical professionals.

• A registered individual will also be able to check the public and private health care facilities in the country with the help of the Health Facility Registry (HFR).

• Once you have downloaded the card, you will get the list of benefits that come along with the card.

• Whenever you visit a new doctor, they will guide you to get your medical records with the help of a Health ID card. The doctor will get a complete idea about your existing disease, treatment till now, medicines you take, discharge summary, tests and reports, etc.

• With effective medical and reliable data, medical treatment will be better and the cost will be reduced.

• The card is not only useful for regular healthcare services but also could be used at AYUSH Healthcare Services. It includes Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy.

• The Health ID card will be very helpful in the current situation of COVID-19 pandemic, as doctors will be able to check your earlier treatments as well as the vaccination status.

• Moreover, if you have a Health ID card, you will be able to get the treatment for COVID-19 anywhere in the country.

This article first appeared on PersonalFN here