VIJAYAWADA: Following the National Medical Commission (NMC) guidelines, the state health department has directed all private medical colleges in the state to provide medical treatment only with an Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) ID.
Addressing representatives from private medical colleges at a workshop held at Dr NTR University of Health Sciences on Wednesday, Health Secretary G Veerapandian stated that ABHA ID-based services are operational across government teaching hospitals and public healthcare facilities.
He urged private colleges to immediately transition from paper-based records to Electronic Health Records (EHR) through ABHA implementation, fostering healthy competition among institutions in adopting digital framework.
Emphasising the long-term significance of digital health records, Veerapandian disclosed that the government has created 5.04 crore ABHA accounts, linking 12.7 crore health records to date.
He cautioned that, ABHA usage and EHR compliance could become critical criteria for seat allocations and institutional permissions granted by the NMC, which is currently monitoring implementation across medical colleges through a centralised dashboard.
Health and Family Welfare Commissioner KVN Chakradhar Babu explained that integrating Health Management Information Systems (HMIS) with the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) enables doctors to instantly access patient medical histories, improving diagnostic speed and overall treatment outcomes.
To encourage digital adoption, the Union Government offers a financial incentive of Rs 10 per generated EHR record.
Out of Rs 150 crore disbursed nationally under this initiative, Andhra Pradesh has received nearly Rs 15 crore, though private hospitals in the state have accounted for only Rs 75 lakh of that total.
Reassuring institution heads, the Commissioner affirmed that the state government, with technical support from the global health organisation PATH, will provide all necessary software and operational assistance to help private medical colleges integrate their existing digital platforms with ABDM. NTR Health University Vice-Chancellor Dr Chandrasekhar, Registrar Dr Sudhir, and ABDM State Nodal Officer BV Rao were present.