80% of persons with disabilities lack health insurance: NCPEDP survey

Eighty per cent of persons with disabilities have no health insurance, and 53% of those who apply face rejection, often without any explanation, noted a nationwide survey conducted between 2023 and 2025 of over 5,000 persons with disabilities across 34 States and Union Territories by the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP).

“Our report exposes the deep systemic inequities that continue to deny approximately 16 crore Indians with disabilities equitable access to health insurance, both public and private,” Arman Ali, Executive Director, NCPEDP, said.

Despite constitutional guarantees, directives issued by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), and the mandates of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, the report finds that persons with disabilities continue to encounter discriminatory underwriting practices, unaffordable premiums, inaccessible digital insurance platforms, and a widespread lack of awareness of available schemes.

The report also notes that many applicants are refused insurance solely based on their disability or pre-existing conditions, with particularly high rejection rates among persons with autism, psychosocial disabilities, intellectual disabilities and blood disorders like thalassemia.

NCPEDP is a non-profit organisation that advocates for the rights of people with disabilities, and it also unveiled a white paper titled ‘Inclusive Health Coverage for All: Disability, Discrimination and Health Insurance in India’ at a national roundtable bringing together policymakers and industry leaders, on Thursday.

Speaking about the white paper, Mr. Ali noted that even as the government expands Ayushman Bharat (PM-JAY) to cover all senior citizens aged 70 and above, persons with disabilities remain conspicuously excluded despite facing equal, if not greater, health vulnerabilities.

“There is no principled or policy justification for this gap. The continued exclusion of persons with disabilities from affordable and comprehensive health insurance is more than a systemic failure. It is a violation of rights,” Mr. Ali said.

To address these systemic gaps, the white paper outlines several key recommendations including the immediate inclusion of all persons with disabilities under Ayushman Bharat (PM-JAY) without age or income criteria, aligning with the 2024 order that expands coverage to senior citizens above the age of 70, enhanced coverage for mental health, rehabilitation, and assistive technologies, creation of a disability inclusion committee within IRDAI and awareness among all stakeholders of insurers and healthcare staff on disability-sensitive service delivery, among other suggestions.