India’s Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), launched in September 2021, aims to establish a national digital health infrastructure. To date, over 850 million citizens hold ABHA digital IDs, with approximately 454,000 health facilities and 767,000 professionals registered, linking more than 842 million digital health records. Experts noted that the ABDM’s sandbox model enables seamless integration for hospitals, insurers, laboratories, and digital providers, reducing IT duplication and long-term maintenance costs while improving clinical care and citizen engagement.
Future Health Districts as a testing ground
The Future Health Districts initiative, a collaboration between India and the WEF, serves as a pilot for ABDM-aligned outcome-driven models. The program targets improvements in screening rates, maternal health follow-ups, and claims-processing times over three to five years. Successful districts will demonstrate the tangible benefits of investable digital health solutions, providing proof of scalable models for other regions.
Digital health as a driver of economic and social prosperity
Experts highlighted that interoperable systems, preventive care, and digital capacity offer high returns, helping bridge disparities in coverage, financing, and efficiency. They recommended framing health as a key driver of national stability and economic growth, strengthening interoperable digital systems, and directing philanthropic funding toward measurable outcomes. Lessons from ABDM and Future Health Districts could guide low- and middle-income countries in developing scalable and affordable digital health solutions.