The Asian Development Bank has approved a $108 million results-based loan to support the Government of Mizoram in strengthening its public health care system and advancing universal health coverage across the state.
The programme, titled Supporting Public Health Care System Strengthening to Achieve Universal Health Care for Mizoram, is designed to improve equitable access to affordable, high-quality health services for Mizoram’s 1.38 million residents, with a special focus on women, older people and persons with disabilities.
The loan will support the rollout of the Mizoram Universal Health Care Scheme, a landmark initiative that brings all citizens under a single health insurance framework using a mix of fully subsidised and contributory mechanisms.
The scheme integrates existing central and state programmes, including the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana and the Mizoram State Health Care Scheme, into one seamless, cashless and paperless platform. Under this model, poor and vulnerable households receive free coverage, while other households pay a premium and government employees contribute a fixed portion of their salary.
With ADB support, Mizoram becomes the first state in India to undertake such a comprehensive reform of its universal health care system. The scheme provides health insurance coverage of up to ₹500,000 per family per year, with the state government fully covering costs for economically vulnerable groups.
The programme also targets Mizoram’s growing burden of noncommunicable diseases and cancer, which together account for more than half of the state’s total disease load. In addition, it addresses the state’s heightened exposure to health risks arising from extreme weather events by integrating environmental adaptation measures such as public awareness initiatives and disaster preparedness into health service delivery.
To ensure a continuum of care, the initiative will strengthen linkages between primary, secondary and tertiary health care services through the universal health care scheme, enabling timely and comprehensive treatment. Institutional capacity will also be enhanced across the Department of Health and Family Welfare, primary health care units and the Mizoram State Health Care Society, which is responsible for implementing the scheme.
