The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) released a directive that will require policy buyers and holders to create an Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA ID). The move is part of a push to ensure the authenticity of data provided by policy seekers and also improve customer service.
The ABHA ID is a 14-digit identified that will be assigned to every person and allow the government to collect and store health information. The unique number is part of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) of the National Health Authority (NHA). The NHA has already issued more than 402 million ABHA IDs and aims to eventually cover the entirety of the country’s 1.3 billion people.
The IRDAI directive requires all policy seekers and holders to create an ABHA ID to purchase or renew any insurance policies. The ABHA ID will also be used by insurers to store information like contact details, addresses, age and more.
Creating an ABHA ID is a relatively simple process that involves providing an Aadhaar number and verifying it.
The IRDAI directive aims to improve the quality of customer service in the insurance sector. It also ensures that policyholders can easily access their data and claim benefits under PMJAY.
A key goal of the initiative is to improve transparency and trust between insurers and policy seekers while helping to reduce incidences of fraud related to insurance policies.
