Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana: An Analytical And Critical Reflection
Harshal Bodana, JRF, School of Law, Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, Indore
ABSTRACT
The introduction of Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana constitutes one of the numerous endeavours of the Government of India towards achievement of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals Agenda. Being a social health insurance scheme, PM-JAY facilitates provision of quality healthcare services to the disadvantaged section of the Indian society by providing cashless and paperless access to medical treatments. It aims at achieving the overarching goal of Universal Health Coverage and combating the excessive levels of “out-of-pocket expenditure”. PM-JAY subsumed the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana and was introduced as a major component of the Ayushman Bharat programme.
Notably, PM-JAY bears striking differences from the private health insurance schemes, evidencing the fact that private insurance and social insurance are significantly different legal systems. This merits a comparative study of the two legal systems. Further, despite being a well-appreciated policy of the government, the novel scheme is tainted with various shortcomings that hinder the achievement of the 2030 SDG agenda, including the lack of awareness amongst the beneficiaries and the exclusion of the outpatient department expenses.
The present research provides a detailed introduction of PM-JAY and draws its alignment with various SDGs. Next, the research critically analyses the success of the scheme over the past few years by highlighting its achievements as well as its prominent drawbacks in light of numerous statistical studies. Following the same, the present research puts forth some practical suggestions that can lend a helping hand in curbing the highlighted problems with the scheme and paving the way forward towards a sustainable future.
