A new conflict has arisen between private hospitals and the Haryana state government regarding the Ayushman Bharat program. The Indian Medical Association (IMA) Haryana has announced its intention to suspend services under Ayushman Bharat for 24 hours on September 1 due to unpaid payments.
IMA claims that the outstanding claims from private hospitals under this program amount to approximately 120 billion rupees. Doctors are demanding immediate payment of the debt, as well as the creation of a fair and transparent system for future claim payments.
An IMA representative in Karnal, Dr. Kamal Charaya, stated that all private hospitals associated with Ayushman Bharat will suspend operations for one day at the Association's request. He emphasized that hundreds of billions of rupees in debt remain unpaid and gave the government time to settle the dues.
Dr. Charaya added that the debt amount is in the hundreds of billions of rupees and has not yet been paid. He noted that time was given to repay the debt, and the decision on the further strategy will be made on September 15. He warned that continuous payment delays could hinder the operation of small private hospitals, potentially leading to their closure.
The situation in Panipat has been described as more serious. It was reported there that private hospital claims amounting to about 80 billion rupees remain unpaid. The IMA District President, Dr. Hemendra Mangal, stated that the lack of payments is creating immense financial pressure on the hospitals. Some institutions have already closed, while many are on the verge of closure.
He insisted that if the government wants private hospitals to continue providing treatment under Ayushman Yojana, it must make the outstanding payments. Dr. Mangal cited Uttar Pradesh as an example, stating that claims there are paid on time, unlike in Haryana where delays occur regularly.
IMA warned that if the debt issue is not resolved, Ayushman services may be suspended again starting September 16. However, emergency patients will receive care during this period, but new scheduled Ayushman patients will not be admitted.
Disputes between private hospitals and the government regarding the Ayushman Bharat program have previously occurred multiple times in Haryana this year. Between January and April, IMA had warned of exiting the program due to accumulated debt dating back to September 2025.
In June, about 600 private hospitals suspended operations for several days due to alleged debts exceeding 400 billion rupees, as well as due to low package tariffs in the Ayushman Bharat and Chirayu Haryana programs. Subsequently, from August 7 to August 26, about 650 accredited private hospitals suspended Ayushman services for 19 days. At that time, questions were raised about both unpaid payments and arbitrary reductions in claim amounts.
Services resumed after the government agreed to expedite fraud case reviews and withdraw notices demanding explanations. A meeting was scheduled to review the situation on October 15. Nevertheless, shortly after this, the dispute flared up again.
The opposition criticized the Haryana government over this matter. Opposition leader Bhupendra Singh Hooda accused the government of being unable to solve the problems of Ayushman patients, as well as several other issues. Following a meeting with the Governor, Congress leaders Gita Bhukkal and Aditya Surjewala also raised the issue of the Ayushman program.
Congress MP Vineet Phogat accused the government of repeatedly failing to resolve the program's patient issues. In turn, the Minister of State for Communications advisor Rajiv Jatli stated that violations were found in the accounts of some hospitals, which doctors acknowledged. He clarified that payments are made regularly according to the central government's Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). He added that the minister personally monitors the situation in areas with deficiencies and necessary measures will be taken.
Attention is currently focused on the 24-hour strike on September 1 and the government's next steps. The question of whether the private hospitals' debt problem can be resolved by the deadline of September 16 remains open.