47 lakh availed treatment, 21,000 health and wellness centres opened under Ayushman Bharat: Harsh Vardhan

About 47 lakh people have availed treatment and more than 21,000 health and wellness centres have become operational under the Ayushman Bharat scheme, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Monday.

His remarks came on the occasion of Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) under Ayushman Bharat completing one year.

"The government is committed to Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and through our Ayushman Bharat Scheme we are well on our way to achieve it by reducing inequalities in access to inpatient care, reducing the incidence of catastrophic health expenditures, and improving access and quality of health services in the public and private sectors," he said at a press conference at the Foreign Correspondents' Club.

Harsh Vardhan said till now, 32 states and Union Territories are implementing Ayushman Bharat PMJAY.

The minister lashed out at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for not implementing the scheme and playing politics over it.

Referring to the Delhi assembly polls due early next year, he said it was now just a matter of time and "we will implement the scheme" in the next few months