Four Northeast States Meet National Ayushman Card Coverage Benchmark

Four northeastern states have matched or exceeded the national benchmark for Ayushman-card coverage, reflecting significant progress in enrolling eligible families under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana. According to the National Health Authority’s Annual Report 2025–26, Mizoram, Assam, Meghalaya and Tripura were among the region’s leading performers based on the proportion of eligible families possessing at least one Ayushman card. Mizoram emerged as one of India’s strongest performers in the northeastern and hilly-states category, with 99% of eligible families having at least one card, placing it just behind Uttarakhand, which achieved full coverage. Assam recorded 80% coverage, matching the national benchmark, while Meghalaya and Tripura also ranked among the category’s top-performing states. Nationwide, around 80% of eligible families across 35 states and Union Territories had received at least one Ayushman card. The report said the number of families holding Ayushman cards rose from 1.26 crore in 2018–19 to 15.82 crore in 2025–26, while the number of individual cardholders reached 43.71 crore by March 31, 2026. Assam also led the northeastern and hilly-states category in individual beneficiary enrolment, covering 72% of those eligible, followed by Uttarakhand and Mizoram at 68% each and Meghalaya at 59%. Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY provides eligible families with cashless hospitalisation coverage of up to ₹5 lakh per family each year for approved secondary and tertiary treatments at empanelled public and private hospitals. Strong card-generation numbers are important because beneficiaries generally need to be identified and enrolled before they can use the scheme smoothly. However, issuing cards is only one part of effective healthcare access, and continued progress will also depend on hospital availability, public awareness, timely claim processing and access to treatment in remote districts. The latest figures nevertheless show that several northeastern states are closing the enrollment gap and bringing more vulnerable families within the government-backed health protection system.