Answer Book question
Yes. Since 29 October 2024, every Indian aged 70 or above gets ₹5 lakh a year of cashless hospital cover under Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY through the Ayushman Vay Vandana Card, with no income, pension or property test. It is a family floater shared between the 70-plus members of a household, on top of any existing PM-JAY or KASP cover, and it works at every empanelled hospital in the country. Pre-existing conditions are covered from day one. Enrolment needs only Aadhaar and takes minutes on the beneficiary portal or at a Common Service Centre or empanelled hospital.
Yes. Since 29 October 2024, every Indian aged 70 or above gets ₹5 lakh a year of cashless hospital cover under Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY through the Ayushman Vay Vandana Card, with no income, pension or property test. It is a family floater shared between the 70-plus members of a household, on top of any existing PM-JAY or KASP cover, and it works at every empanelled hospital in the country. Pre-existing conditions are covered from day one. Enrolment needs only Aadhaar and takes minutes on the beneficiary portal or at a Common Service Centre or empanelled hospital.
A retired bank officer in Adoor, with a pension well above any means test, is admitted for a hip replacement. His daughter assumes government schemes are for the poor. Under Vay Vandana he is entitled to ₹5 lakh of cashless treatment at the empanelled private hospital she has chosen. The card takes her fifteen minutes to generate on her phone.
The Union Cabinet approved the expansion on 11 September 2024; it went live on 29 October 2024. whether you may qualify: age 70 or above per Aadhaar, any income. Benefit: ₹5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary hospitalisation across nearly two thousand packages in 27 specialities, at over 29,000 empanelled hospitals nationally, with portability across states. Families already on PM-JAY get an additional ₹5 lakh exclusively for their 70-plus members.
Seniors covered by CGHS, ECHS or ESIC choose one scheme; those with private insurance can hold both, though not for the same admission. Kerala implements PM-JAY through the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi, run by the State Health Agency; Vay Vandana cards are generated through the national portal and honoured at KASP-empanelled hospitals. in or the Ayushman app with Aadhaar OTP, or a CSC, Akshaya centre or empanelled hospital's Ayushman help desk.
Aadhaar shows date of birth and is linked to a mobile the parent or you can access Whether the family already has a KASP/PM-JAY card; the 70-plus member still needs a fresh Vay Vandana enrolment Which hospitals near you are empanelled (the portal has a finder; ask the hospital's Ayushman desk) Whether the parent has CGHS/ECHS; if so, a choice has to be made The card PDF saved on the phone of whoever accompanies the parent to hospital
Assuming a middle-class family is ineligible. Age is the only test. Also: waiting for an emergency to enrol. Enrolment during admission is possible but slow.
Kerala's private hospitals are heavily empanelled under KASP, so the cover is usable in the places families actually go. Adoor, Thiruvalla and Pathanamthitta town all have empanelled hospitals. Pair this with a private policy: Vay Vandana is the base layer, not a reason to cancel existing cover (see Vol 1, 'Is ₹5 lakh health insurance enough for my parents?').
Both parents aged 74 and 71. One Vay Vandana floater of ₹5 lakh a year shared between them, plus their own KASP ₹5 lakh if eligible, plus any private policy. A ₹3.2 lakh cardiac admission at an empanelled hospital: cashless under Vay Vandana, leaving ₹1.8 lakh for the rest of the year.
Outpatient treatment, medicines bought outside admission, and procedures not in the package list are not covered. Hospitals not empanelled cannot bill the scheme. A hospital that demands cash from a card-holding senior for a covered package should be reported to the State Health Agency's grievance line.
Generate the Vay Vandana card for every 70-plus member this week Save the card and the empanelled hospital list with the family Keep private cover running; treat this as the floor
After five years, can the insurer still reject my claim for non-disclosure? My parents are 70. Can they still get insurance? (Vol 1)
Health, disability & life events
National Health Authority, AB PM-JAY Ayushman Vay Vandana guidelines (October 2024) and beneficiary portal · Kerala State Health Agency, KASP hospital list and grievance contacts · Lok Sabha written replies on scheme coverage (November 2024 onwards) Last checked: 22 August 2026. Rates, limits and whether you may qualify change. Confirm with the official source before you act. Ask Kerala Rising: Use only general, non-identifying facts.
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This page is general orientation, not personal insurance, investment, medical, legal, lending, tax, employment, or professional advice. Rules, rates, deadlines, and decisions can change. Confirm the current position with the named official source and use a licensed or qualified professional where your situation requires one. Kerala Rising does not decide whether you may qualify, approve claims, or promise an outcome.