Cabinet floats National Health Agency to support Ayushman Bharat

The Cabinet on Wednesday approved the restructuring of existing National Health Agency as 'National Health Authority' for better implementation of Pradhan Mantri-Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY). "With this approval, the existing society 'National Health Agency' has been dissolved and will be replaced by National Health Authority as an attached office to Ministry of Health and Family Welfare," it said in a statement.

The existing decision-making structure has been replaced with the governing board chaired by the Minister of Health & Family Welfare. The new structure will enable the decision-making at a faster pace, required for smooth implementation of the scheme. The states will also be represented in the governing board on a rotational basis. The Cabinet approved the existing budget for the National Health Agency, but no new funds were granted. The National Health Authority will have full accountability, authority and mandate to implement PM-JAY through an efficient decision-making process.

(With inputs from agencies.)