New Delhi: The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday approved the national roll out of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) with a budget of Rs1,600 crores for five years. The National Health Authority will be the implementing agency, said a government statement. “Digital health solutions across healthcare ecosystem have proven to be of immense benefit over the years, with CoWIN, Arogya Setu and eSanjeevani further demonstrating the role technology can play in enabling access to healthcare. However, there is a need to integrate such solutions for continuum of care and effective utilisation of resources,” the statement added. Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission is creating a seamless online platform through the provision wide range of data, information and infrastructure services, interoperable, standards-based digital systems while ensuring the security, confidentiality and privacy of health-related personal information, it added. “Under the ABDM, citizens will be able to create their Ayushman Bharat Health Account numbers, to which their digital health records can be linked. This will enable creation of longitudinal health records for individuals across various healthcare providers, and improve clinical decision making by healthcare providers,” it said. The mission will improve equitable access to quality healthcare by encouraging use of technologies such as telemedicine and enabling national portability of health services. UNI ASU MR
