Apart from this, Modi will also launch two more schemes—Heal by India to send doctors abroad to perform medical procedures; and Heal in India to promote medical tourism in the country, the officials cited above said on the condition of anonymity.

The Samagra Swasthya Yojana will absorb schemes, including PM Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY), Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), and PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM).

The new umbrella scheme will be a rebranding of the National Health Mission (NHM), or an advanced version of it, said a government official, one of the three people cited above.

“This new scheme will have a saturation approach, which means it will cover all healthcare services so that every individual can get them easily. It will be the biggest healthcare scheme, with a holistic and comprehensive approach. This umbrella scheme will be IT-enabled and absorb all major flagship schemes of the government such as PM-JAY, ABDM and PM-ABHIM,” the official said.

According to the second official, a detailed presentation was made before the prime minister recently about all three initiatives.

Heal in India will be the country’s first institutional mechanism to promote medical tourism, the third official said. “The idea is to create a platform that will facilitate international patients coming to India for treatment. This will give liberty to foreign and overseas patients to choose hospitals in India as per the package rate, facilities, and kind of services in any part of the country they want to get the treatment. For example, Kerala is running one such portal, but the health ministry’s platform on medical value travel will be a comprehensive one. Patients can report their grievances and also give feedback ratings to the hospital. Even patients can contact the hospital and take telemedicine before coming to India. This platform will cater to foreign patients, with a list of high-end hospitals to less expensive hospitals as per their requirement,” the official said.

“The Heal By India initiative will provide an opportunity for our doctors and other medical professionals to travel to other countries to perform surgeries, providing a way to a healthy global society. The National Health Authority’s health professional registry (HPR) and hospital facility registry (HFR) are supporting us in building this platform,” the official added.

Queries emailed to the spokespeople for Prime Minister’s Office, and the health ministry on Saturday remained unanswered.

Dr Naresh Trehan, chairman and managing director of Medanta Hospital, said: “India has huge potential to serve overseas patients because of world-class treatment and facilities. They get at a price which is one-tenth of the price in the US, and the quality is the same. But they have little awareness when they come to India. So, we need to facilitate them as they should know about the hospitals in India; a medical visa should be available; medical channel at the airport should be available. Hospitals should pick them up from the airport for treatment and get them back on the plane. So, if we make the whole circle seamless, with a positive experience, then India’s potential is unlimited.”

As far as Heal By India is concerned, Dr Trehan said, “Currently, many Indian doctors and nurses are serving overseas very successfully in very high positions. Most of them are deputed in the National Health Service (NHS) run by the UK government. There are countries which are requesting us to send teams of doctors and nurses to come and operate in their health facilities till they develop such well-equipped systems, and we are already helping them. We are also collaborating with many countries to bring their doctors for training. So, India’s position in the field of high-end medicines and complicated procedures at a reasonable cost is very high. So, we need to capitalize it.”

Dr Satyender Goel, founder and chief executive of India Health Link, a health tech company, said, “The Union government has launched multiple healthcare schemes in the past couple of years, and these cover different aspects of the health system. So, if all of these schemes come under one roof, that will complete the system.”

India is currently ranked 10th among the top 46 countries in the Medical Tourism Index 2020-21.

Treatment costs in India are 65-90% below the cost in the US. In India, there are 39 Joint Commission International and 657 National Accreditation Board for Hospitals accredited hospitals, which are considered equal to or better than global quality standards.

First article