Claims for CGHS hospital treatment: Rules for geo-tagged photos explained

Health ministry tightens rules to ensure compliance and prevent fraud in welfare programme

The Health Ministry will require users of the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) to upload geo-tagged photographs at a website whenever they are treated at a hospital, seeking to improve compliance for a scheme that serves  Central Government employees, pensioners, and their eligible family members.Additionally, certain other categories such as Members of Parliament, Freedom Fighters, and some employees of autonomous organizations are also eligible. 

 

The step was ordered amid concerns over fraudulent claims and intends to ensure transparency in the billing and admission process for inpatient (IPD) and outpatient (OPD) services.

 

One-time waiver for past cases

The Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has allowed health care organisations (HCOs) a one-time exemption from uploading daily geo-tagged photos of patients admitted under CGHS between the date of the earlier mandate in December 2024 and the date of the latest Office Memorandum (OM) issued in 2025.

 

Hospitals can now resubmit pending claims from this period by appending a copy of the current OM to each case on the Transaction Management System (TMS) portal.

   

What’s mandatory and what’s not in new rules

The revised norms, effective immediately, spell out different photo requirements for referral and non-referral cases:

 

For IPD patients

-No geo-tagged photos needed for referral cases (via e-referral):

 

-Valid referral must be uploaded on the National Health Authority (NHA) portal.

 

-Two geo-tagged photos required for non-referral cases (manual, emergencies, follow-ups, age 70+):

 

• At admission 
• At discharge

 

-If hospitalised for more than seven days: one additional photo every 7th day.

 

-Photos must be clicked inside the hospital (ward/ICU). No CGHS card required in the frame.

 

For OPD visits

No geo-tagged photos needed for valid referral or endorsement:

 

-Without referral:

 

-Mandatory photo required in following cases:

• Patients aged 70 and above 
• Follow-up consultations without a fresh endorsement 
• Bed-ridden patients (screenshot of video consultation acceptable)

 

How hospitals must upload photos

-Images must be geo-tagged automatically via a smartphone or tablet.

 

-Upload must happen in real-time or within 24 hours of capture.

 

-Each photo should be under 1 MB to avoid portal slowdowns.

 

-Hospitals must store a local backup of images for at least 90 days for audit checks.

 

The government’s new rules aim to tighten oversight while reducing administrative burden where possible. CGHS beneficiaries are advised to keep track of their treatment referrals and consult hospital staff in case of queries on claim eligibility.