Life is full of uncertainties and tests us at every stage. The year 2020 and onwards have been significantly trying for the entire humanity, with Covid 19 trespassing over normalcy and teaching us the importance of good health and good times. Even the perception towards life and health has changed after the Pandemic, with people now giving vital importance in keeping good health and securing it with adequate health insurance. Pandemic or no pandemic, adequate Health Insurance is the “Need of the hour” today.
Best health care facilities for each member in the family, ever rising age, Medical Inflation, and an added threat of Pandemics or other communicable diseases have led people to be equipped with Adequate Health Insurance. But why do we see that people are still not aware of this need?
6 Myths about Health Insurance
6. Health Insurance is for Old people
It is a misconception amongst young individuals that Health Insurance is a product that is meant for old people who would be suffering from diseases in their old age. This can also be attributed to people misleading health insurance for critical illnesses only. On the contrary, comprehensive and adequate health insurance will cover all types of medical emergencies, accident-related hospitalization, illnesses, and many more such things.
5. Health Insurance Cover starts from Day 1
A major lack of awareness is there amongst the masses that all health insurance policies start coverage from day one, and this can also be a reason behind their procrastination in taking it at the earliest. Several diseases have a different waiting period and will give coverage post that only.
4. My employer’s Health Insurance policy is sufficient for me
Most of the working/ salaried professionals are covered under employer health insurance plan, and they feel that this would be sufficient in times of medical exigencies. However, this type of insurance gives only the coverage until you are working with that organization. Also, these will not necessarily cover the family members.
Buying a separate Health Insurance policy is essential to safeguard oneself and one’s family at times so that one continues to enjoy health insurance benefits, provided the policy is renewed well in the time and without any gap.
3. Health Insurance does not provides maternity cover
Again, it is a wide prevalent myth that there is no maternity cover under a health insurance policy. This is not true, as this cover can be bought or included in your policy as per the working of the policy. One point to note is that maternity cover usually comes with a waiting period, so it is necessary to take this inclusion well in time when you begin conceptualizing family planning.
2. One can choose the right health insurance for all scenarios
While choosing a base health insurance plan is simple and easy and is often done from the online or offline medium. However, buying a critical illness plan, doing adequate top-up as per the requirement, and even choosing the right base cover plan need careful analysis, and this can be done after a complete review of the one’s health and future requirements that may be analyzed by an expert. In many scenarios, a person without expertise might end up with a non-appropriate plan.
To get the right guidance on what is the best health insurance for you and your family as per your unique health needs, it is recommended to consult an expert.
1. Only a policy with low premium is good
Most people consider health insurance policies with the lowest premium as a good choice to take as a backup for medical exigencies. Though the lowest premium is always preferable, however, all aspects that are needed as per the health needs should be part of the policy; otherwise, the plan may not be able to support as desired.
What is Adequate Health Insurance?
Simply put, a health insurance cover that would be sufficient for a person and his family in the time of the need while providing enough coverage to bear hospital expenses and other such related commitments to the treatment can be said as an Adequate Health Insurance cover. Health Insurance is still a taboo for many Indians, and this is well reflected by even the data and stats available. As per a Niti Ayog, approximately 30% of the population, or around 40 crore people- captioned as ‘the missing middle class’ in this report do not have any financial security for their health.
Source:https://www.niti.gov.in/sites/default/files/2021-10/HealthInsurance-forIndiasMissingMiddle_28-10-2021.pdf
But with the rise in lifestyle diseases and Covid-19 cases on the rise in India, the minimum treatment costs in a good hospital would cost around Rs. 4-5 lakh. And In today’s scenario where more than one family is hospitalized, the sum assured of Rs. 4-5 lakh would deem to be adequate. So what can a person do to have enough health insurance?
- Select a Good Base Health Insurance- A base health insurance plan covers hospitalization expenses that include pre and post-expenses such as cost of medicines, diagnostic tests, etc., which come under Regular health insurance plans, i.e., Individual plan & family floater plans. The family floater plan gives the whole family a protection umbrella. Keeping in mind the cost of medical treatment these days, a minimum of Rs. 10 Lakh cover is recommended to get the needed coverage in a good hospital. Though, in case of multiple hospitalizations, a higher sum insured will be required.
- An important Critical Illness cover– A Critical Illness Plan covers the life-threatening /chronic illnesses that might occur future. A specific number of diseases are covered under this as per the policy. This policy is very critical for people with rising age or with co-morbidities as it will be the savior for the pocket in case of long hospitalization for a particular disease and will prevent “loss of income.” A critical illness plan can support long-term illness, support expenses for doctor visits and medical tests. Generally, a critical illness plan for a middle-aged person of 40-45 year old will cost less than 10k for a 10 lakh plan.
- Timely Renewal- Every Health Insurance plan has a renewal date to it and inability to renew by that specified time period leads to policy lapse. Hence, the loss of all benefits of the coverage, no claim bonus, etc. In such a scenario, one might also have to again go through the waiting period for diseases. Therefore, timely renewal is as critical as choosing the right plan for yourself.
- Buy a super top-up plan – The advancement in technology has made life and Lifestyle easier and fast-paced. However, this advancement has come with its own drawbacks. A sedentary Lifestyle giving rise to various lifestyle diseases is a major concern now. Advancement in medical science has given new treatments to tackle diseases but has simultaneously increased the cost for Medical treatments. Today, in case of hospitalization, even a 5 lakh cover will seem insufficient due to soaring medical costs such as affordability and location. If the hospital bill exceeds the health insurance cover( as per the policy), then the rest amount is to be paid from the pocket, which can put a huge dent in one’s pocket. Is there a financial backup that can, at minimal cost that can, save the money from being drained?
A super top-up plan is a super cost-effective way that gives an ultimate backup in case you have exhausted your Insurance cover. A super top-up health plan covers the hospital bills with the amount or limit specified in the plan. After the deductible is paid, the super-top-up policy is available for subsequent claims. And more importantly, this can be bought even without a Base Health Insurance Plan.
Some of the benefits of a Super top-up plan are:
- Covers the Pandemic- In case you are hospitalized for covid 19 and the base health plan coverage is exhausted, the super top-up plan will come into play to pay the hospital bill as per its limit defined in your policy. So, helping you preserve your savings.
- Customization- One can customize your Super top-up plan as per your needs. One can take a top-up of one’s choice to increase the coverage.
- Treatment in wide range of hospitals– A super top-up plan is applicable the same way as your health plan in all the network hospitals.
- Higher Sum Insured– A super top-up plan provides an extensive coverage in a minimal time period.
- Greater Coverage for Senior Citizens -A super top-up plan provides the needed elaborate coverage that is required to cushion the health expenses for senior citizens.
- Tax efficiency- The premium paid under a super top-up plan is eligible for income tax deductions under section- (80D of the Income Tax Act.)
Let’s take a case study to understand this concept
Mr. Ravi has bought a Health policy worth Rs. 6 lakhs, and unfortunately, he faces a medical emergency that requires Rs. 8 lakhs expenditure. The first 6 lakhs of the expense will be covered by the regular health insurance plan under the regular policy plan; the remaining amount of 2 lakhs, Mr. Ravi will have to pay from his pocket. Mr. Ravi decided to have a super top-up policy of Rs.10 lakhs, with a deductible of 5 lakhs; the amount after the deductible is consumed from the base policy will be managed or covered under the super top-up plan. Thus it acts as a cushion to safeguard your finances when you have exhausted the chosen limit.
Some Important points to look into before buying a super top up health insurance
- Choose an appropriate health insurance coverage limit– Each person’s needs and requirements are different, and this would apply to financial needs for medical emergencies as well. One needs to know the adequate amount of super top-up coverage for one’s family and choose the coverage accordingly
- Check and verify the list of hospitals- Sometimes, the list of hospitals listed in your base policy might not be entirely the same covered in your Super top plan. Hence, it is good to verify the list of network hospitals for both.
- Waiting period can be different– The pre-existing diseases waiting period of the super-top plan can differ from that given in the base plan. A careful selection is needed for the best benefit from both.
- Best time to buy- While, if not taken, a super top-up plan should be taken on an immediate basis to provide extended coverage and meet any unwanted medical exigency, it is best to buy the plan along with the base health plan to get the maximum benefit of enhanced coverage.
Caring for one’s health is of utmost importance, and one needs to make the right choices to support it. Buying adequate health insurance, well in time, not only safeguards oneself and the family from the threat of being drained of savings in case of a major illness or hospitalization of self or a family member. Niva Recharge Plan, Manipal Cigna Super top-up, Bajaj Extra Care Plus Plan, HDFC Ergo Medisure super top-up are a few from the many great plans that one can choose from for buying a Super top-up plan.
Taking appropriate steps for buying the right health insurance plans, whether it is for yourself or your entire family, is essential to consider the long-term value of your health insurance plan. The best super top-up health insurance plans in the industry are capable of giving such value, helping out in preventing the savings from getting drained due to sudden medical emergencies, rising costs of medical procedures & hospitalizations.
