Coronary angioplasty, dialysis among top 5 procedures performed under Ayushman Bharat

New Delhi: Coronary angioplasty and dialysis are among the top five medical procedures that beneficiaries have undergone under the Centre's flagship Ayushman Bharat health insurance scheme, the government informed the Lok Sabha on Friday. Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA), a minimally invasive procedure to unblock coronary arteries and allow blood circulation unobstructed to the heart muscle, has been performed the most under the scheme, according to government data.

The next four were hemodialysis, high-risk delivery, cataract surgeries and coronary artery bypass grafting, respectively.

Treatment for most diseases/conditions is available free at public hospitals.

Still, a large number of people, including those from poor and vulnerable sections, have to incur out-of-pocket expenditure to get treatment, particularly for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation, given India's large population, MoS for Health Ashwini Choubey said.

To provide health protection to poor and vulnerable sections, 1,393 treatment packages have been approved under the scheme, he said in reply to a question in the lower house.

The minister said since the launch of the scheme in September 2018, feedback on certain aspects of benefit packages - such as terminology, duplication and anomalies like repetition of packages, different rates for same procedures in different specialities - have been received and the National Health Authority is reviewing this feedback for possible rationalisation.

The NHA is the apex body responsible for the implementation of the scheme which aims to provide a health cover of up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation to over 10.74 crore vulnerable families.

Around 26 lakh people have availed treatment under the scheme so far.

Over 15,000 hospitals and healthcare providers have been empanelled across the country under the scheme.