India’s General Insurance Council is seeking to expand its shared insurer network to 5,000 hospitals by March 31, 2027, a goal aimed at easing participation for smaller providers.
India’s FY27 runs from April 1, 2026, to March 31, 2027. In May, S Prakash, the Council’s CEO for Health Insurance Ecosystem, said about 2,000 hospitals had joined and set a 5,000-hospital goal for the fiscal year, Business Standard reported. Prakash also described efforts to bring smaller hospitals into the system and train them.
Niva Bupa Health Insurance Company Limited Managing Director and CEO Krishnan Ramachandran said July 30 that the initiative had MoUs with more than 3,000 hospitals, according to the insurer’s earnings-call transcript. His statement gave a July MoU count rather than an account of additions since FY27 began.
NDTV Profit reported Friday that about 1,000 hospitals had joined during FY27, bringing the network’s reported total to roughly 3,000. The Council has not published a primary update confirming the October additions. The July transcript cites MoUs with more than 3,000 hospitals, while NDTV Profit reports a roughly 3,000-hospital total for October; the sources do not explain whether they count hospitals the same way.
The Council’s FAQ says a hospital is officially empanelled after both sides complete MoU signing. The May count described hospitals that had joined, while NDTV Profit reported both additions and an approximate total for October.
The Council describes the platform as a shared digital route for hospitals applying to join networks of participating general and standalone health insurers. It says the common process standardizes onboarding and is intended to support small and medium-sized hospitals, including facilities in peripheral and suburban areas. At least 32 insurers are involved.
The target deadline is March 31, 2027, the close of India’s FY27.
