Executive Summary:
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare addresses the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN) scheme, including the Health Minister's Cancer Patient Fund (HMCPF), providing financial assistance up to Rs. 15 lakh for cancer treatment to poor patients. Applications can be submitted offline through government hospitals or online via the National Health Authority (NHA) IT platform. In 2024-25, Rs. 27.06 Crores was disbursed under the RAN scheme.
Key Points / Main Content:
* **Financial Assistance:**
* Up to Rs. 15 lakh financial assistance for cancer treatment is available under HMCPF, a component of the RAN scheme.
* Eligibility extends to poor patients below the State/UT poverty line (offline mode) and those from States/UTs integrated with the National Food Security Act (NFSA) data on the NHA IT platform (online mode).
* Financial assistance is released directly to the treating hospitals/institutes.
* **Application Process:**
* Applications can be submitted offline or online.
* Offline applications are for States/UTs not integrated on the NHA IT platform, submitted through any Government hospital.
* Online applications require the Government hospital to generate a RAN ID for eligible patients, processed through the Transaction Management System (TMS).
* Antyodaya beneficiaries (from NFSA-integrated States/UTs) and PMJAY beneficiaries (for treatments not covered under PMJAY) are eligible via the online mode.
* **Required Documents:**
* Offline: Prescribed proforma signed by the treating doctor and Medical Superintendent, along with Income Certificate and Ration Card.
* Online: Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) ration card and Aadhaar card.
* **Fund Disbursement:**
* Rs. 27.06 Crores disbursed under the RAN scheme in 2024-25.
* Rs. 9.14 Crores disbursed, benefitting 134 poor patients in 2025-2026 (till 16.07.2025).
* Funds are released on a case-to-case basis.
* **Recommendations & Treatment Centers:**
* There is no formal provision for recommendations from Members of Parliament.
* Treatment can be provided at Regional Cancer Centres (RCCs), Tertiary Care Cancer Centres (TCCCs), State Cancer Institutes (SCIs), and other Government hospitals/institutes with cancer treatment facilities.
Impact Analysis:
* **BPL Cancer Patients:**
* Impact: Access to financial assistance for cancer treatment, up to Rs. 15 lakh, improving their chances of recovery.
* Action Required: Determine eligibility (based on poverty line or NFSA integration), gather required documents (ration card, income certificate, Aadhaar card), and apply through a government hospital either offline or online.
* **Government Hospitals/Institutes (including RCCs, TCCCs, SCIs):**
* Impact: Serve as primary application points and treatment centers for eligible patients, receiving direct financial assistance for treatment costs.
* Action Required: Facilitate application processes (generate RAN IDs online, process offline applications), verify patient eligibility, and provide treatment as per the scheme guidelines.
* **National Health Authority (NHA):**
* Impact: Manages the IT platform for online application processing and fund disbursement in integrated States/UTs.
* Action Required: Maintain and update the IT platform, ensure seamless integration with NFSA data, and facilitate efficient processing of online applications.
Key Entities Referenced
Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi RAN: Umbrella scheme providing financial assistance for the treatment of poor patients, particularly those suffering from cancer.
Health Minister's Cancer Patient Fund HMCPF: A component of the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN) scheme specifically for providing financial assistance to cancer patients.
Below Poverty Line BPL: Refers to patients living below the defined poverty line, who are eligible for financial assistance under the RAN scheme.
National Food Security Act NFSA: The data from NFSA is integrated with the National Health Authority's IT platform to facilitate online applications for RAN.
National Health Authority NHA: The agency whose IT platform is integrated with the National Food Security Act (NFSA) data for online processing of RAN applications.
PMJAY: Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, a health insurance scheme. RAN provides assistance for treatments not covered under PMJAY.
Antyodaya Anna Yojana AAY: A scheme that provides ration cards to the poorest families, required for online application processing under RAN.
Regional Cancer Centres RCCs: Government hospitals and institutions eligible to provide treatment under the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN) scheme.
GOVERNMENTOFINDIA
MINISTRYOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE
DEPARTMENTOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE
LOK SABHA
UNSTARREDQUESTION NO. 3234
TO BE ANSWERED ON08.08.2025
RASHTRIYAAROGYANIDHI(RAN)SCHEMEFORCANCERPATIENTS
3234.SHRIK SUDHAKARAN:
Will the Minister of HEALTHANDFAMILYWELFARE be pleased tostate:
(a) the current status of the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN) scheme, including the Health
Minister’s Cancer Patient Fund (HMCPF) and its implementation in 2025, particularly for
cancerpatientsBelow Poverty Line (BPL);
(b) whether the BPL patients suffering from cancer are eligible to apply for financial
assistance under the RAN scheme and if so, the specific documents that are required for their
application;
(c) the total amount of funds disbursed under the said scheme and HMCPF in 2024–25,
yearwise andState/UT-wise;
(d) whether the Members of Parliament recommend BPL patients who are eligible for RAN
assistance and if so, the details thereof along with steps involved in the recommendation and
applicationprocess; and
(e) the number of Government hospitals and institutions, including Regional Cancer Centres
(RCCs) eligibletoprovide treatment underthe said scheme?
ANSWER
THE MINISTER OFSTATE IN THE MINISTRYOFHEALTH AND FAMILY
WELFARE
(SHRIPRATAPRAO JADHAV)
(a) to (e) - One-time financial assistance of up to Rs. 15 lakh is provided for the treatment of
poor patients, suffering from cancer under the Health Minister’s Cancer Patient Fund
(HMCPF) component of the Umbrella Scheme of Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN), who are
livingbelowState/UT-wise threshold povertyline (offlinemode)andalso for the treatment of
those poor patients who belong to those States/UTs the National Food Security Act (NFSA)
data of which isintegrated onNational HealthAuthority (NHA)’sITplatform (online mode).
Patients canapplyfor financialassistance underthe Umbrella Schemeof RAN through eitheroffline or online modes. Offline submission of applications can be made through any
Government hospital by patients belonging to those States/UTs, the NFSA data of which, is
not integrated on National Health Authority (NHA)’s IT platform. For online mode (for
States/UTs which are integrated on NHA’s IT platform), the Government hospital generates
RAN ID of the eligible patientand, subsequently, the applicationis processed further through
the Transaction Management System (TMS).Upon approval,confirmation issent tothe bank
for reserving the fund for the patient and treatment commences. Antyodaya beneficiaries
from States/UTs where National Food Security Act (NFSA)data has beenintegrated with the
National Health Authority’s (NHA) IT platform, as well as PM-JAY beneficiaries requiring
treatment not covered under PM-JAY, are eligible to avail benefits under the Umbrella
Schemeof Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN)through the online mode.
Financial assistance for eligible patients is released to the treating hospitals/institutes. Since
the funds are released on case-to-case basis in both online and offline modes, State/ UT-wise
data is not maintained centrally. An amount of Rs. 27.06 Crores was disbursed under the
Umbrella Scheme of RAN, which includes a component of HMCPF in 2024–25. A total of
134poor patientshave beenbenefittedthrough thesaid schemein2025-2026(till 16.07.2025)
with anamount of Rs. 9.14Crores disbursed.
There is no provision for recommendation from Members of Parliament under the Umbrella
Scheme of RAN, however, requests are received from Hon’ble Members for processing of
applications which are disposed off in accordance with the guidelines of the RAN Scheme.
Offline applications are required to be in prescribed proforma duly signed by the treating
doctor and countersigned by Medical Superintendent of the Government hospital along with
Income Certificate and Ration Card of the family is required to be submitted for seeking
financial assistance under RAN. Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) ration card and Aadhaar
card are required for processing of applications through online mode. The process of cases
under RAN involves various stages of action i.e. scrutiny of application, placing the matter
before Technical Committee,administrative andfinancialapprovals.
The financial assistance is provided for treatment of the patients at Regional Cancer Centres
(RCCs) / Tertiary Care Cancer Centres (TCCCs), State Cancer Institutes (SCIs) and other
Government hospitals/institutes havingcancertreatmentfacilities.
More information on the Umbrella Scheme of Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi canbe accessed at the
link: https://mohfw.gov.in/?q=en/Major-Programmes/poor-patients-financial-support
***