India's government developing national AI policy for healthcare
The National Health Authority (NHA) is developing a national policy to guide AI use across India's health services, the agency's CEO Dr Sunil Kumar Barnwal said on Friday at a brainstorming conference in Pune.
"Emerging technologies like AI can address critical health challenges, and this upcoming policy will provide a roadmap for its comprehensive application in health services," Barnwal said.
What's driving the policy
The policy comes as India's Ayushman Bharat health scheme marks seven years of operation. The program has reduced financial pressure on citizens while generating the data infrastructure needed for AI deployment across hospitals and health systems.
Data-driven transparency will shape the next phase of India's healthcare expansion, Barnwal said.
Maharashtra pushes AI adoption
Maharashtra's health minister Meghna Sakore Bordikar said the state is prioritizing AI and advanced technology across health departments. "Our policy is to maximise the use of AI and advanced tech across all departments to provide quality healthcare," she said.
The state launched dedicated menopause clinics in January. More than 17,000 women have used these services since they opened.
New infrastructure launched
The NHA unveiled a digital academy and released updated guidelines alongside a strategy paper for the National Health Claims Exchange (NHCX).
States including Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Bihar presented performance data on two major health programs: the Ayushman Bharat scheme and the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission.
The conference continues Saturday with demonstrations of NHCX-enabled health management systems and findings from the NHA's health data analytics unit.
Healthcare professionals managing digital transformation or health information systems should track this policy as it develops. The framework will likely shape how hospitals and clinics implement AI for Healthcare and AI Data Analysis tools in coming years.
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