New Delhi: Union Health Minister J P Nadda informed the Lok Sabha on Friday that 6.04 crore people in the 17 identified tribal-dominated states, including Maharashtra, have been screened for Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) till July 28, out of which 2,16,118 have been confirmed as diseased.
Replying to a question, the health minister said the National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission (NSCAEM) was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Madhya Pradesh on July 1, 2023 to eliminate SCD.
The objectives of the mission are provision of affordable, accessible and quality care to all SCD patients, reduction in the prevalence of the disease through awareness creation, targeted screening of seven crore people till 2025-26 in the age group of 0-40 years in the affected districts of tribal areas and counselling through collaborative efforts of central ministries and state governments, he said.
Screenings are conducted under NSCAEM at all health facilities from district hospitals up to Ayushman Arogya Mandir (AAM) level, Nadda said, adding, “As on 28.07.2025, a total of 6,04,50,683 population in the 17 identified tribal dominated states including Maharashtra have been screened, out of which 2,16,118 have been confirmed as diseased.”
Patients living with SCD are provided with services and facilities to improve their quality of life through AAMs, which include follow-up of individuals with the disease at frequent intervals, counselling regarding lifestyle management, pre-marriage and pre-natal decisions, nutritional supplementation support through the distribution of folic acid tablets, and management of crisis symptoms, as well as referral to higher-level facilities.
As of July 28, 2,62,67,997 genetic counselling ID cards have been distributed in the country, Nadda said.
Hydroxyurea has been included in the National Health Mission (NHM) Essential Drugs List at Sub-Health Centres, Primary Health Centres (PHC), Urban PHC, Community Health Centres (CHC) and District Hospitals to address the issue of access to medicine, the minister said.
Under NHM, financial support is provided for the procurement of Hydroxyurea, to reduce the out-of-pocket expenditure borne by sickle cell anaemia patients.
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) has issued guidelines for cost norms for the establishment of centres of excellence (CoE) on SCD funded by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) in various states.
To date, 15 CoEs have been approved in the country by MoTA, Nadda informed.
Through MoTA, awareness and counselling material have been developed and disseminated to the states and Union Territories (UTs). Through monthly Ayushman Arogya Shivirs, awareness is raised for various health programmes including SCD.
The ministry provides technical and financial support to the states and UTs for conducting screenings and procurement of drugs for sickle cell anaemia, based on the proposals received in the form of programme implementation plans (PIPs) under NHM.
