How India is Building the World’s Largest Digital Health Ecosystem for 1.5 billion people?

India’s journey in digital health began just over a decade ago, yet it has quickly grown into one of the most ambitious transformations worldwide.

It started in 2012 with maternal and child health programs, expanded to cover non-communicable diseases, and gained momentum with the launch of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) in 2020.

At the heart of ABDM is the ABHA ID—a unique 14-digit health identifier for every citizen. Combined with registries for facilities and professionals, and a consent-based health information exchange, India has laid the groundwork for a truly interoperable system.

So far, over 800 million ABHA IDs have been created. Yet, only around 20% of facilities and professionals are onboarded, with adoption challenges in the private sector.

Ritesh Aeron is a distinguished digital health expert and program management specialist with a strong track record of driving large-scale health systems transformation through digital innovation. He currently serves as a Director at the Equitable Global Healthcare Foundation (EGHF), a role he has held since April 2025. In this discussion he explains:

What is the current state of healthcare digitalization in India?

How did India’s digital health journey start and evolve?

What is the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) and how does it work?

What is the ABHA ID and why is it important?

How does interoperability and consent-based data exchange function?

How many people and facilities are onboarded so far?

What challenges remain in adoption and regulation?

How is data being used for population health and surveillance?

What role does AI and innovation play in care delivery?

How open is the Indian market for global providers?

How is AI affecting both healthcare delivery and the software workforce?