The PM Atmanirbhar Swasth Bharat Yojana (PMASBY) is a scheme which aims to provide better healthcare facilities to Indian citizens. It prioritises developing healthcare infrastructure across primary, secondary and tertiary levels.
The PMASBY also includes plans to strengthen the 33 existing public health units and operationalise 17 new public health units. It offers various benefits to the citizens of India, such as easier availability of diagnostic services, new healthcare centres in urban areas, an integrated health information portal and training for frontline healthcare workers.
PMASBY has been launched with the following objectives-
The main goal of the PMASBY scheme is to improve the public health facilities/infrastructure by filling the current gaps, especially in primary & essential/critical healthcare facilities, in rural and urban areas
To build an Information Technology (IT) -enabled supervision system for diseases by setting up a network of laboratories in urban areas at different levels- block, district, regional, and national
The PMASBY scheme also has plans to strengthen 33 existing public health units and operationalise 17 new public health units at entry points. Such new facilities will help the Government effectively prevent, detect, investigate and combat disease outbreaks and public health emergencies
Furthermore, the PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission also aims to effectively utilise the existing infrastructure of district hospitals, fix the current unevenness in the distribution of medical colleges and increase the availability of health experts
READ MORE: Government Health Insurance Schemes in India
Through the PMASBY, citizens of India throughout the country can benefit by:
The scheme aims to support almost 17,788 currently present healthcare facility centres spread across ten high focus states, benefiting the common people.
The scheme aims to further set up around 11,024 healthcare facility centres in urban areas of all the states.
The Pradhan Mantri Atmanirbhar Swasth Bharat Yojana aims to provide critical care services through critical care hospital blocks in all Indian districts with over 5 lakh populations. Critical care services will also be provided on referral in districts with less than 5 lakh populations.
A complete range of diagnostic services will be made available to Indian citizens under the public healthcare system through a network of laboratories across India.
This scheme will develop and extend an integrated health information portal that connects all public health laboratories across Indian states and union territories.
157 new medical colleges have been approved for the country under the three phases of this scheme. Amongst these, 63 medical colleges are already functioning.
Frontline health workers will also be trained to build a workforce capable of responding to any public health emergency under the PMASBY scheme.
READ MORE: Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana
Through the PMASBY, the Government aims to set up the following facilities to develop the healthcare infrastructure in India under the PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission:
National Institution for One Health
National Institutes for Virology
Bio-safety Level 3 Laboratories
Regional Research Platform for the Southeast Asia region of WHO
Regional National Centre for Disease Control
PMASBY- Pradhan Mantri/PM Atmanirbhar Swasth Bharat Yojana, announced on the 1st of February 2021, seeks to substantially enhance India's healthcare infrastructure. Under the public healthcare system, Indian citizens will thus, have access to better healthcare services in rural and urban areas. Moreover, the PMASBY scheme also plans to set up more medical colleges for students and healthcare experts, enabling them to be better prepared to deal with public health emergencies in the near future. Another thing that can help protect you in health emergencies is a health insurance plan. Having health insurance will ensure that your finacial well being is looked after during a medical crisis
All permanent residents of India can apply for the PMASBY scheme. The documents required for the PMASBY scheme are:
Aadhaar Card
Ration Card
Valid mobile number
Bank account
Income proof certificate
Residential proof certificate
Passport size photograph
The PMASBY scheme was launched by the Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman.
Five (5) Regional National Centres will be constructed.
The primary objective of Prime Minister Atmanirbhar Swasth Bharat Yojana is bringing about improvisation of the health departments throughout the country. People will get the chance of diagnosis, treatment, care, and emergency services will also be available for every ordinary Indian citizen.
Applicants can dial toll-free number 1075 in case of any queries regarding the scheme.
The post-pandemic havoc made the government realise the need to concentrate more on the health sector, and as a result, a large lump sum budget was allocated under PMASBY. The funding has been granted to develop the health departments, making laboratories with advanced technology and medical research, which will be in addition to the National Health Mission.