The Indian government has announced the widespread expansion of primary care centres, free medicines, diagnostic services, and health insurance to reduce the financial burden on patients, covering over 12 crore vulnerable families and senior citizens across the country.
The Union government has said it is using a mix of primary care, insurance cover, free medicines and diagnostic services to bring down patients’ out-of-pocket health costs, in a written reply to the Lok Sabha on August 7, 2026.
Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Anupriya Patel said 1.87 lakh Ayushman Arogya Mandirs are now functioning across the country. According to the reply, the centres are meant to deliver preventive, promotive, curative, palliative and rehabilitative care, with services spanning maternal and child health, communicable diseases and long-term illnesses.
The government also pointed to the National Free Drugs Service Initiative and the Free Diagnostics Service Initiative, saying both are aimed at improving access to essential medicines and tests through public facilities. It said states and Union Territories receive financial support for medicines at different levels of the public health system.
Under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, eligible families are entitled to health cover of ₹5 lakh a year for secondary and tertiary hospital treatment. The government said the scheme covers more than 12 crore economically vulnerable families, and that states and Union Territories may widen the beneficiary pool using their own funds. It also said the cover has been extended to people aged 70 and above regardless of socio-economic status, with around 6 crore senior citizens in 4.5 crore families included through the Ayushman Vay Vandana Card.
The reply further cited lower-cost generic drugs under the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana and affordable pharmacy outlets at participating hospitals and institutions. These measures sit within a wider public health framework that also includes the National Health Mission, the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission and the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana.
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