Health Minister's Discretionary Grant (HMDG)

What is the Health Minister's Discretionary Grant?

The Health Minister's Discretionary Grant (HMDG) is a financial-assistance facility of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India, through which poor and indigent patients receive help to meet part of the cost of their treatment in government hospitals. Health Minister's Discretionary Grant is one of the components under the Ministry's financial-assistance mechanisms for the poor, alongside the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN).

According to the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, the grant provides assistance of up to Rs 1.25 lakh to a patient whose annual family income is up to Rs 1.25 lakh, to defray a part of the expenditure on hospitalisation or treatment in a government hospital where free medical facilities are not available. The word "discretionary" is important: the grant is sanctioned at the discretion of the Health Minister, and it is intended to supplement; not fully fund, the cost of treatment.

Key features

• Administered directly by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.
• Targets patients Below the Poverty Line-level incomes (family income up to Rs 1.25 lakh a year).
• Available for treatment in government hospitals and institutes.
• Grant is generally routed to the treating hospital, not paid as cash.

How much assistance does HMDG provide?

The quantum of assistance is linked to the estimated cost of treatment certified by the government hospital:

The grant therefore rises with the cost of treatment but is capped at Rs 1.25 lakh. It is designed to cover a portion of a large medical bill, for example, a serious surgery or a prolonged hospital stay, for a family that cannot otherwise afford it.

Who is eligible for the Health Minister's Discretionary Grant?

You can apply if:

• You are a poor or indigent patient whose annual family income is up to Rs 1.25 lakh.
• You are being treated in a government hospital or institute.
• Free medical facilities are not available to you for the treatment concerned.

You cannot apply if:

• You are a Central or State Government employee — government servants are not eligible for the grant under the rules.
• Your annual family income exceeds Rs 1.25 lakh.
• You are being treated at a private hospital rather than a government hospital or institute.

Because the grant is discretionary, meeting the income and hospital conditions makes a patient eligible to be considered, but does not create an automatic entitlement: each case is decided on its merits.

What documents are required for HMDG?

The income certificate must be an original issued by a competent revenue authority, the Block Development Officer, Tehsildar, Collector or Sub-Divisional Magistrate, stating the occupation and income of the applicant and the family members.

How to apply for the Health Minister's Discretionary Grant

1. Get the prescribed application proforma for HMDG from the government hospital treating the patient or from the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.
2. Have it filled and signed by the treating doctor, who records the diagnosis and the estimated cost of treatment.
3. Get it countersigned by the Medical Superintendent of the government hospital or institute.
4. Attach the income certificate (original, from BDO/Tehsildar/Collector/ SDM) and a copy of the ration card.
5. Forward the complete application to the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare for consideration and sanction at the discretion of the Health Minister.

Where to get help

Health Minister's Discretionary Grant is processed centrally by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, New Delhi. The treating government hospital's medical social work department or the office of the Medical Superintendent is usually the first point of contact for the proforma and for forwarding the application. Patients with life-threatening diseases who need larger assistance may also be guided towards the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN) and the Health Minister's Cancer Patient Fund, which are separate schemes for treatment at identified government super-speciality institutes.

Applicants should be wary of any middleman who offers to "arrange" the grant for a fee. The application moves through the government hospital and the Ministry, and no agent is needed.