Part 13: Free Cardiac Care — Heart Surgery for ₹0

Heart surgery can cost ₹3-15 Lakh in private hospitals. Here's how to get it free or near-free.

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Top Centres for Free/Subsidized Cardiac Care

Hospital	Location	Specialties	Cost
AIIMS New Delhi	Delhi	Bypass, valve, angioplasty	₹10 OPD. Surgery subsidized.
GB Pant Hospital	Delhi	Cardiac surgery	Free/subsidized
Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute	Trivandrum	Cardiac surgery, interventional cardiology	Subsidized
PGIMER	Chandigarh	Cardiac surgery	Subsidized (₹30 OPD)
AIIMS Bhubaneswar	Odisha	Cardiology, CTVS	₹10 OPD
KIMS	Bhubaneswar	Cardiac care	Free with BSKY
Madras Medical College	Chennai	Cardiac surgery	Free at govt hospital

Ayushman Bharat Cardiac Packages

Under PM-JAY, the following are covered cashless at empanelled hospitals:

• Coronary angioplasty (single stent): Package covers up to ₹80,000-1,20,000
• CABG (Bypass surgery): Package covers up to ₹1,70,000-2,50,000
• Valve replacement: Package covers up to ₹1,50,000-2,00,000
• Pacemaker implantation: Package covers up to ₹50,000-80,000
• Diagnostic angiography: Package covers up to ₹12,000-15,000

How to Get Free Heart Surgery:

1. Get an ECG + Echo at your nearest government hospital (free under NIDAN/state schemes).
2. If surgery is needed, get referred to AIIMS, PGIMER, or a medical college.
3. Use PM-JAY for cashless surgery at empanelled private hospitals.
4. If not PM-JAY eligible, government hospital surgery is heavily subsidized (₹5,000-15,000 vs ₹5-15 Lakh private).

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Next: Part 14 — Free Mental Health Care