The Union Health Ministry clarified on October 20, 2020 that a digital health identity under the National Digital Health Mission (NDHM) will not be mandatory to get the COVID-19 vaccine when it is available.
The ambitious NDHM programme was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Independence Day speech on August 15, 2020. As per the health programme, everyone enrolled with the mission will get a Digital Health ID that will enable smooth access to medical services.
However, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan clarified during a press briefing that the NDHM programme does not make a digital ID or health ID mandatory to receive service under the digital ecosystem that NDHM is creating. He clarified that a digital health ID would not be mandatory for immunization against COVID-19. He further reassured that those who do not have health ID's would not be deprived of COVID Vaccination.
Other IDs can be utilised
• The Health Secretary clarified that in the case of people who do not have health IDs, other IDs will be utilised. He said it would be like an electoral scenario where multiple IDs are prescribed beforehand so that no one is deprived of the benefits of either voting or vaccination on the designated day.
• This assurance comes a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address to the nation assured that India is working to put in place a robust vaccine delivery system to ensure every Indian gets equal access to the COVID vaccine as soon as it is made available.
• The Prime Minister had mentioned that the digitized network of the NDHM programme along with the new digital health ID will be used to ensure its success.
What is Digital Health ID?
The Digital Health ID under NDHM will comprise all information about the person including medical data, previous medical prescriptions, ailments, diagnostic reports and summaries of previous discharge reports from hospitals.
Objective of NDHM
The National Digital Health Mission (NDHM) is expected to pave way for more efficiency and transparency in the healthcare services of the country.
Data privacy concerns under NDHM
Addressing the concerns regarding data privacy and data security under NDHM programme, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan stated that there is a bill pending in Parliament that addresses the issue. He said that until the bill gets passed, the NDHM has a data management policy that has been in the public domain for more than a month.
He said that the government has received more than 7,000 comments on NDHM's data management policy, which ensures both individual data privacy as well as data security. He stated that the centre would be suitably refining its policies based on the comments received.
Background
The National Health Authority (NHA) has been mandated by the government to design, build, roll-out and implement the National Digital Health Mission (NDHM) across the nation. The NHA was responsible for the implementation of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY).
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