What happened
MUHCS was supposed to cover all 12 lakh state residents, government and private sector alike, on a Rs 50 crore annual outlay. By April 30, 2026, EastMojo reported that several of Mizoram's largest private hospitals had quietly opted out of empanelment, leaving seriously ill patients to ration treatment between the state's already-strained public hospitals. The new ADB loan covers the gap the ADB itself predicted: the Centre will repay 90% as a grant and Mizoram is on the hook for only Rs 80 crore as a soft loan, which is to say the cost of running a state healthcare scheme that misjudged its own price tag is being absorbed by an entirely different government. For 2026-27, the state has allocated Rs 130 crore — already insufficient at last year's claim run-rate. To unlock the loan, Mizoram must 'expand the network of empanelled hospitals' — which is the exact problem the scheme had on Day One, before any money had been spent.