Rajasthan tops in health insurance with 88% cover

The highest proportion of households covered under health insurance or financial schemes across the country is in Rajasthan, says the latest data on health insurance coverage – collected in 2019-21 through the National Family Health Survey (NFHS).

In the state, 88% of its households with at least one member is covered by a health scheme or health insurance. Andhra Pradesh is second with 80%, Goa (73%), Chhattisgarh (71%) and Telangana (69%).

The survey pointed out that health insurance coverage in the country is far from satisfactory. Over two-fifths (41%) of the households have at least one usual member covered under health insurance or financing scheme.

When household members get sick, they are slightly more likely to seek care in the public sector (50%) than the private sector (48%). However, in the state, percentage of households using government health facility is quite high. Only 26.4% of households in the state generally do not use a government health facility. Health department officials said they are providing free medicines and free diagnostic tests free to the people in government hospitals, which has also attracted patients to government hospitals.