Major changes in insurance rules! Insurance will now be available only with this ID

If you are an insurance policyholder, this news is very important for you. Now, it will be mandatory for you to create an Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) to avail insurance . The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has directed insurance companies to ensure that both existing and new policyholders obtain an Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) ID. Under this government scheme, all citizens’ health-related information is collected through their unique ID. Let’s find out more about this ID.

Why ABHA Card is highly essential?

This health ID is part of the National Health Authority (NHA)’s Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM). It maintains records of all your health-related information. This provides several benefits to citizens. The most significant advantage is that it allows you to choose the right hospital and doctors based on your illness. With this card, you can easily receive treatment at a hospital without the need for any registration. Anyone can get this card; there are no eligibility criteria. In other words, anyone can apply for this card.

All your medical records are stored in the Ayushman Bharat Health Account. It includes details such as when you had fallen ill, which tests you underwent, the test reports, and the doctors you consulted, etc.

The government’s major objective:

The government aims to connect all Indians under this scheme. So far, 40.26 crore ABHA IDs have been issued under this program. Since last year, 2022, IRDAI and NHA have been making efforts to expedite the process of issuing ABHA IDs in partnership with TPAs (Third Party Administrators). Furthermore, efforts are being made to improve the insurance claim processing.

How to obtain an ABHA ID?

As per the directive issued by IRDAI, all insurers must include the ABHA ID number of policyholders in the insurance forms. Additionally, insurers need to obtain the member’s consent before providing medical records to third-party administrators (TPAs). To facilitate this, insurers must provide the option to choose the “ABHA” facility in the insurance form (including online forms). In other words, having an ABHA ID is now mandatory for obtaining insurance.

What should existing policyholders do?

IRDAI has instructed insurance companies to assist policyholders in obtaining ABHA IDs through insurance agents. Existing policyholders are also required to obtain an ABHA ID. They can obtain their ABHA number during the renewal process of their policies. Essentially, the ABHA ID will not only help identify insurance policyholders digitally but will also provide better healthcare benefits to citizens.