New Delhi, Nov 13 (IANS): More than five lakh senior citizens who are 70 and above have been enrolled for Ayushman cards since the expansion of the health assurance scheme AB-PMJAY, according to reports.

The Ayushman Vaya Vandana Card, which provides free health coverage to all elderly above 70 years of age, regardless of their income, was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi two weeks ago. It was approved by the Union Cabinet in September.

It is in addition to the existing AB PM-JAY family scheme, wherein the elderly will have a separate cover of Rs 5 lakh per year.

The reports citing data from the National Health Authority showed that 5,12,598 requests for enrollment have been received under the yojana. Of these 4,64,541 were approved, while the status of 47,916 is pending. About 141 requests have been rejected.

Madhya Pradesh had the highest number of applications for enrollment (1.66 lakh) followed by Kerala (1.28 lakh), Uttar Pradesh (69,044), and Gujarat (25,491).

"We have shared IEC (information, education, communication) material with all states. As word spreads, we are confident more and more senior citizens will become involved," an official was quoted as saying.

The scheme aims to potentially benefit around 6 crore individuals across 4.5 crore families.

It will prove to be extremely beneficial even as India’s elderly population is projected to double by 2050. The increase in population will fuel the demand for geriatric care.

The eligible beneficiaries can apply for the Ayushman Bharat Senior Citizen Scheme through www.beneficiary.nha.gov.in or by using the Ayushman app.

AB PM-JAY, the world's largest publicly funded health assurance scheme, was launched in 2018 to provide health cover to 55 crore people, corresponding to 12.34 crore poor and vulnerable families.