Chemotherapy-Induced Fingerprint Effacement Leading to Deprivation of Health Insurance: A Case Series and Review of Literature

Abstract

Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) is a game changer for the Indian health care system, where patients with cancer are the major beneficiaries. Some intrinsic procedural shortcomings are restricting the beneficiaries to utilize it optimally. We report a case series of patients receiving chemotherapy who had developed adermatoglyphia because of chemotherapeutic treatment. Therefore, these patients became ineligible for getting the benefits of PMJAY, because of failure of the biometric system to recognize their fingerprints. Hence, patient treatment could not be completed. As a solution, we suggest that the alternatives to fingerprint recognition like face recognition and iris scanning be incorporated into the biometric system to ensure continuous benefit of PMJAY to such patients.