ABHA Health ID for Patients: Complete Guide for Indian Clinics to Create & Link Records

What Is ABHA?

ABHA (Ayushman Bharat Health Account) is a 14-digit unique health identifier issued free of charge to every Indian resident under the National Digital Health Mission (NDHM). Think of it as a PAN card for your health — one number that links all your medical records, prescriptions, lab reports, and insurance history across providers.

ABHA is the foundation of the ABDM (Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission) ecosystem. Every ABDM-compliant clinic software can read and write health records tagged to a patient's ABHA ID, meaning records follow the patient — not the folder in your almirah.

ABHA is different from PMJAY (the insurance scheme). PMJAY covers eligible patients for cashless hospitalisation; ABHA is universal and free for all citizens regardless of income.

How to Create ABHA for Patients at Your Clinic

You can enroll patients in under 3 minutes using either Aadhaar-based or mobile-based verification:

Linking Existing Records to ABHA

For existing patients who already have an ABHA ID, your clinic software should allow you to fetch their ABHA-linked records from other providers. The patient grants consent via OTP before any records are shared — privacy is built-in by design.

To link your clinic's existing records to a patient's ABHA:

• Pull up the patient in your software and enter their ABHA number or address
• The patient approves the link via OTP on their registered mobile
• All future records (prescriptions, lab results, bills) at your clinic are automatically tagged to their ABHA
• Historical records can be manually uploaded as PDFs and linked to the ABHA account

Your clinic must be registered in the Health Facility Registry (HFR) to create and link ABHA records. HFR registration is free and takes 2–3 working days.

Benefits for Your Clinic

• ✓Faster insurance verification — PMJAY eligibility is automatically verified when you scan a patient's ABHA, eliminating manual calls to TPAs.
• ✓No duplicate registrations — ABHA prevents creating multiple records for the same patient under different spellings of their name.
• ✓Portable medical history — when a patient transfers from another clinic, their complete history is available with their consent in minutes.
• ✓ABDM incentives — government schemes for ABDM-registered facilities include priority empanelment and digital health grants.
• ✓Reduced paperwork — no more maintaining physical files for patients who visit occasionally. Their records live in the national health ecosystem.

FAQ

Is ABHA mandatory for patients?

No, ABHA is voluntary for patients. You cannot refuse treatment to a patient who doesn't have an ABHA ID. However, you can encourage enrollment by explaining the benefits — especially for patients with chronic conditions who see multiple doctors.

Does my clinic need to be ABDM-registered to create ABHA?

Yes. Your clinic must have an HFR (Health Facility Registry) ID and your software must be ABDM-compliant to create ABHA IDs and link records. Check our ABDM compliance guide for registration steps.

What if the patient doesn't have an Aadhaar card?

ABHA can be created using a mobile number alone (without Aadhaar), but this creates a “low-KYC” ABHA that has limited linkage capabilities. Aadhaar-based ABHA is the full-featured version.

Can patients delete their ABHA?

Yes. Patients have full data control — they can view, share, and delete their ABHA account from the ABDM Health app (formerly PHR app). Clinics cannot delete a patient's ABHA ID.