Date:- August 2026

Common Empanelment Initiative – Focus and Guiding Principles

The Common Empanelment Programme implemented by the GI Council is primarily designed to expand the network of small and medium hospitals, particularly in tier-II, tier-III cities, rural areas, and suburban locations.

The core objective of this initiative is to support greater health insurance penetration across the country. As health insurance reaches underserved regions, policyholders should have access to nearby hospitals offering cashless treatment through a single empanelment process. This can enhance confidence in purchasing health insurance and provide financial protection during medical emergencies.

The guiding principles of the programme are as follows

• The initial focus shall remain on empanelling small and medium hospitals that cater to local communities.
• A base tariff has been developed based on the prevailing reimbursement levels already accepted by the member insurance companies.
• The processing officers can offer rates up to 20% more than the base tariff ,after considering the hospital's infrastructure, clinical capabilities, quality standards, accreditation, other objective, and subjective parameters.
• However, where a hospital seeks higher package rates , such applications can be referred to 3-member committee who can offer up to 40%more than the base tariff. Still if the hospital is not convinced, the application may be kept on hold for review at a later stage.
• The empanelment of larger category hospitals can be revisited after the IRDAI–CII working group initiative submits its proposed guidelines on hospital categorisation.

At this stage, our collective efforts should remain focused on creating a robust cashless network of small and medium hospitals, thereby improving healthcare accessibility, and enabling more people in rural and semi-urban India to purchase health insurance with confidence.

The General Insurance Council (GI Council) is strengthening the Common Empanelment process to make it transparent, secure, seamless, and digital-first.

• No Empanelment Fee: GI Council does not charge any fee for hospital empanelment.
• Direct Engagement Only: Hospitals must deal directly with GI Council for all Common Empanelment matters.
• No Third-Party Agents: No agent, intermediary, consultant, or third party is authorized to facilitate or process empanelment.
• Use the Official Portal: Hospitals are encouraged to complete registration and documentation only through the official Common Empanelment Portal.