Lok Sabha Question No. 4698 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-20
Subject: Reduction in Cost of Healthcare Facilities
Ministry: HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE
Asked by: Shri Tanuj Punia

## GOVERNMENTOFINDIA MINISTRY OFHEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE DEPARTMENTOFHEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4698 TO BE ANSWERED ON 20 th MARCH 2026

## REDUCTION IN COST OF HEALTHCARE FACILITIES

## 4698. SHRI TANUJ PUNIA:

Will the Minister of HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government proposes to slash the cost of healthcare facilities and increase the supply of doctors with the help of technology and modified medical education;

(b) if so, the details of the steps taken/proposed to be taken by the Government in this regard and if not, the reasons therefor;

- (c) the total number of healthcare system that have been set-up under National Health Mission (NHM) in Uttar Pradesh; and
- (d) the details of the funds allocated to Uttar Pradesh under NHM during the last three years?

## ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE (SHRI PRATAPRAO JADHAV)

(a) & (b): The Government of India has been implementing various schemes under the National Health Mission (NHM) with the objective of providing accessible, affordable, and quality healthcare services across the country. Under the National Health Mission (NHM), financial and technical support based on their needs is provided to States/UTs for decentralized planning. Some of the key initiatives for health systems strengthening are given below:

-  Ayushman Bharat -Ayushman Arogya Mandir (AB-AAM)
-  Free Diagnostics Service Initiative (FDSI)
-  Free Drugs Service Initiative (FDSI)
-  Community Participation
-  Mobile Medical Units (MMUs)
-  National Ambulance Services (NAS)
-  Indian Public Health Standards (IPHS) 2022
-  National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS)
-  Pradhan Mantri-Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM)
-  Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri-Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY)
-  Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM)
-  XV-Finance Commission Health Grants channelized through local government

access to equitable, affordable, and quality healthcare services. These initiatives intend to facilitate a critical shift from selective to comprehensive primary care leading to reduce burden of communicable, non-communicable, and maternal and child related diseases burden. This will help in lowering the out-of-pocket expenditure as envisaged by the NHP 2017.

(c) & (d): As per the information provided by the State Government of Uttar Pradesh, in order to ensure comprehensive primary health care closer to community, all Sub-health centers (SHCs), primary healthcare centres (rural and urban PHCs) UHSC, are being strengthened as Ayushman Arogya Mandir (AAM), staffed by appropriately trained primary health care team. The medical officer of the primary health centre would oversee the functioning of the AAMs that falls in that area. By the end of February 2026, a total of 23,454 AAMs are operational in the State, including 17,738 at Sub-Health Centres (SHCs), 2,617 at Primary Health Centres (PHCs), 721 at Urban Primary Health Centres (UPHCs), 1,377 at Urban Health Sub-Centres (UHSCs), and 1,001 Ayush AAMs; over the past three years, the number of newly operational AAMs has been 8,296 in FY 2022 -23, 460 in FY 2023 -24, and 380 in FY 2024 -25.

Under the National Health Mission (NHM), financial and technical support based on their needs is provided to States/UTs including Uttar Pradesh for health systems strengthening, maternal and child health related issues, communicable diseases, non-communicable diseases and nutrition based on their proposals within their resource envelop. The details of healthcare infrastructure projects initiated or on-going for the State/UTs including Uttar Pradesh, for the project-wise and year wise budgets approvals can be accessed with the help of the following link to RoPs in the Ministry ' s Website:

https://nhm.gov.in/index4.php?lang=1&level=0&linkid=49&lid=62

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