When it comes to health insurance, you want to be assured of getting medical attention without causing any financial strain. The possibility of falling ill and undergoing some kind of expensive health treatment during the lifetime is much more than a sudden demise. Given the cost of treatment at private health care facilities, it’s almost beyond reach for the Indian middle and lower income class to meet such expenses. Despite all these facts, penetration of Health Insurance is exceptionally low in India. This is partly because of a lack of understanding of various products and the need for these products. There is a wide range of health products available in the market, each with its own advantages and drawbacks. Understanding them is important to make the right choice.
Policy Mantra helps you learn what to look for when choosing a health insurance product, it’s important to know how these products operate so you can decide which product has all the traits that fit your needs. Whether you already have health insurance or are in the process of changing health insurance providers, being an informed shopper will empower you to compare and choose the right product for you. When choosing your health insurance provider, many plans should be acceptable to you, but you want one with adequate coverage while making the most sense financially. Here is list of few Health Insurance products to choose from.
INDIVIDUAL HEALTH PLAN:
This is the simplest form of health insurance. It covers hospitalization expenses for an individual with a sum assured limit. The insurance premium depends on the sum assured value. There are certain limitations to this type of cover in terms of pre-existing ailments, out-patient treatments, limit on maximum age at entry and other exclusions.
FAMILY FLOATERS:
These plans consist of shared Individual Health Plan. The benefits are mostly the same, but the sum insured limit is shared by all the family members covered under the plan. This reduces the need for you to pay from your pocket. It comes at a lower premium. This type of cover has certain restrictions like, it has an upper age limit of 55 years or 60 years. Moreover, coverage of children under this policy will cease once they reach 25 years. Therefore, a family floater is more suitable for a young family.
CRITICAL ILLNESS:
This is generally provided in addition to the individual or family floater health plan. In India, these plans are sold separately; this is a major flaw in the sales of health insurance. In critical illness cover a lump sum amount is paid for a pre specified set of diseases which are critical in nature such as cancer or a stroke. Restriction: This is not a comprehensive health insurance cover and does not cover all diseases. It covers only specific ailments. Moreover, a diagnosis of a critical ailment like cancer, for example, may not be enough to trigger payment of the policy if the cancer has not spread or is not life-threatening. Other restrictions may include a specific number of days the policyholder must be ill or must survive after diagnosis.
DAILY HOSPITALIZATION CASH BENEFIT:
Hospital Cash Plan is a daily cash benefit insurance policy that assists the policy holder to meet all his/her miscellaneous expenses during the period of their hospitalization generally not covered in the regular health insurance. It acts as a supplement to the health insurance policy. Payment of Rs. 500 to 5000 is paid on daily basis of inpatient hospitalization. Drawback of this type of cover is that these plans are not sufficient in themselves as they only cover hospitalization expenses and not medical costs.
UNIT-LINKED HEALTH PLAN:
These plans are similar to Unit Linked Life Insurance plans except that these cover health insurance instead. Although life insurers are selling these policies, they may not cover life risk. Some portion of premium goes towards medical coverage and the rest is invested in the stock market just like a ULIP. The benefits are defined and the payout is not dependent on the costs actually incurred. Being Linked to the market, they are subject to market risks and also costs like fund management charges.
SENIOR CITIZEN HEALTH PLAN:
This plan is similar to individual health plan but designed for older age people. Most basic health insurance plans has the limitation on entry age at around 60 years while Senior Citizens Health Plans are generally for the people in the age group of 60-80 years. Most can be renewed lifelong or up to the age of 90 years, and have a fixed coverage. Main drawback of this plan is that many ailments are excluded.
