Life is unpredictable and a good reason to protect your family against these uncertainties. However, if you ever have a medical emergency, you must have a strategy in place to pull yourself out of this predicament. That is why you need to invest in a health insurance policy in India to avoid feeling helpless at such a crucial time.
Health insurance and Mediclaim policies help you pay for expensive medical treatments so that you can stop worrying about the bills and start focusing on your recovery. However, as crucial as investing in a health insurance policy in India, it is equally important to choose the right one that provides you with adequate financial protection.
The best way to choose a reliable health insurance policy in India amongst so many products is to assess your own needs first. The insurance plan will also vary on the basis of your age, the number of family members you want to insure, the diseases that you want to cover, etc. Other than that, here are some things you need to know before investing in a health insurance policy in India.
- Know about the types of insurance policies
Before you buy a health insurance policy in India, you need to know the different types of plans available. Some of them are mentioned below:
- Health insurance for senior citizen: This plan is designed for people above 60. It provides cover from all kinds of risks due to old age.
- Health insurance for Family: This plan is available for people who want to insure their entire family under a single cover.
- Individual plan: This involves only the policyholder against critical illnesses and diseases. It also provides a cashless facility and includes ambulance expenses, among other things.
- Critical illness: This type of health insurance policy in India covers you against the risk of certain critical illnesses, such as cancer, kidney failure, heart attack, etc. It is a great add-on to your existing plan that may not provide cover against these diseases.
Be sure to assess the types of insurance plan and your requirements before investing in a policy.
- Waiting period
When looking for a health insurance plan in India, you must check the waiting period for pre-existing illnesses. It can vary between 2-5 years. This will reduce your chances of getting a claim if your need arises during the waiting period.
- Family medical history
If you want to insure your family members too, keep their age and the number of family members in mind. You should also check for pre-existing diseases and their medical history in mind to get an accurate quote for premium.
- Sum insured
Choosing the sum insured is perhaps the most important consideration when you want to invest in a health insurance policy in India. The amount you choose will cover you for a year. Therefore, you must choose the sum insured wisely. The best way to keep the premium low and the coverage high is by getting insured at a young age. At the same time, you must ensure that the premium amount is affordable and something you can sustain for a long time.
- Cashless facility
A cashless facility is when you get treatment in one of the insurer’s network hospitals. Your insurer will settle the hospitalization bills without you having to go through tedious paperwork or worrying about the funds. It is one of the most important features of a health insurance plan. Make sure your preferred hospital is within the list of network hospitals.
- Pre and post hospitalization
Your insurance provider should also provide you coverage for medical expenses arising before and after hospitalization, such as follow-up costs, consultation fee, medication, etc.
- Claim process
Check out the claim process of the insurer before investing in them. Be sure to check the claim settlement ratio as well. A higher claim settlement ratio means that the insurer will settle most of the claims raised in a year. For instance, Care Health Insurance has a CSR of 95.2$%, which means that they settle more than 95% of the claims raised.
These are some of the many factors that you need to keep in mind when looking to invest in a health insurance policy.
