Tamil Nadu Assembly: State government to launch health insurance for the elderly

Tamil Nadu will launch the ‘Chief Minister’s Elderly Health Insurance Scheme’, covering nearly 38 lakh senior citizens aged 70 and above. The scheme will provide free medical treatment, including cancer care packages, advanced cardiac surgeries, organ transplants, and high-end diagnostic services, at empanelled government and private hospitals, with no ceiling on income, Health Minister K.G. Arunraj announced in the Assembly on Monday (August 17, 2026).

The Minister made 115 announcements for the Health Department at a total estimated outlay of ₹2,997 crore. It covered areas including policy reforms, universal free health services, new posts creation, infrastructure projects, equipment and procurement, direct beneficiary programmes and digital health initiatives.

The 87-year-old Tamil Nadu Public Health Act, 1939, will be replaced with a modern, comprehensive Act to address contemporary and future health challenges. Dr. Arunraj said a new provision would make unsupervised home births outside hospitals a punishable offence. Noting that Tamil Nadu was known as the country’s health capital, he said that ‘TN Medicity’, a world class integrated medical hub comprising clinical services, research, medical tourism, and AYUSH, would be established. The government will allocate ₹10 crore for the preparation of a Detailed Project Report in the first phase.

‘Nalam 360-Annual Free Health Check-up for All’ scheme will be rolled out. Under this, everyone aged 30 and above will receive 14 basic tests annually, free of cost, across 1,257 government health facilities in the State.

This will include blood pressure, ECG, haemoglobin, complete haemogram, random blood sugar, urea, creatinine, total cholesterol, serum bilirubin, urine albumin, and VIA screening. For the first time in the State, the Health Department will introduce Home Based Diagnostic Services — sample collection and testing services — in metropolitan areas on a public-private partnership model, he said.

The department will come up with a ‘Positive Health Policy’ to promote holistic health and wellbeing at the community, family, and individual levels, accompanied by the “Nalam 360” mobile application. A new legislation ‘TN Institutions of State Importance in Health Care Act’ will come up to create institutions of State importance to provide world-class medical services.

Addressing a long-standing demand, Dr. Arunraj said 2,500 permanent posts of staff nurses would be created. Existing contract nurses on consolidated pay will be absorbed into regular time-scale pay. A total of 1,695 nursing posts on consolidated pay will be created at a cost of ₹42.72 crore.

A total of 3,594 medical staff across 24 categories, including pharmacists, nursing assistants, village health nurses, and ophthalmic assistants, will be recruited through the Medical Services Recruitment Board. Additionally, the department will create 284 temporary super speciality posts across 25 specialities such as neurology, cardiology and nephrology on time-scale pay to take advanced medical care to the district-level.