Month: March 2019

Medical expenses are skyrocketing as medical inflation is on the rise. New treatments are constantly being developed with latest technology and these treatments are expensive. In fact, even a mere hospitalisation can amount to tens of thousands of rupees even if you have to undergo a minor surgery. Given the increasing medical costs, do you think you can afford a medical contingency yourself?

According to a survey conducted by the National Sample Survey Office in 2013-14, 36 million Indian households faced medical expenses which exceeded their annual per capita consumption. (Source: https://www.livemint.com/Home-Page/gTErhKxOcHv2BIa89RzonM/ThestaggeringcostsofIndias-healthcare-system.html ). The numbers say that 36 million households faced severe medical contingencies which put a strain on their annual household budget. Given the increasing medical costs, the numbers are not surprising. What is surprising though is that these families did not have health insurance to protect against the medical expenses.

Health insurance policies prove to be a blessing when faced with a medical contingency which threatens your finances. The plan covers medical expenses and gives financial relief to you. Though a health insurance plan is important, covering your entire family under a family floater health insurance plan is as important as buying the plan itself. Do you know why?

Here are the reasons why –

• Medical emergency might strike any loved one

Medical emergencies don’t come announced. When they strike they can strike any of your beloved family members. If any member falls ill and requires medical assistance, you need to pay for the medical expenses incurred. So, the financial burden of medical emergency remains on your head even when you don’t fall sick but one of your loved ones do fall sick. That is why a family floater health plan is needed. It takes care of the medical expenses of any of the covered member if the member falls sick.

• The plan provides an umbrella coverage

Family floater health plans cover all members under a single plan. There is a single sum insured and a single premium which is payable. Thus, you don’t have to undertake the hassle of buying separate health insurance plans for each family member and remembering to pay multiple premiums regularly. The plan is also a cheaper alternative than buying separate health plans. Moreover, the plan extends umbrella coverage for all family members. Any member can use the sum insured independently as and when needed. Thus, all members are secured of the coverage, jointly as well as independently.

• You also get tax benefits

Health insurance premiums paid towards a family floater plan give you tax saving benefits. The premium paid is allowed as a deduction under Section 80D of the Income Tax Act. You can claim a deduction of up to INR 25, 000 by paying a premium on the health insurance plan covering yourself and your family members.

Read more about All you need to know about income tax.

Given these benefits, a family floater health insurance plan is a must which should cover yourself, your spouse and dependent children. If you have dependent parents, you should buy a separate floater cover for them. Coverage for all family members is essential in today’s age when medical contingencies can strike anyone. When buying health cover for your family, however, the following points should be borne in mind –

• The sum insured should be optimal considering the members covered and the expected medical costs.
• If affordability of a high sum insured is an issue, you can buy a normal floater plan with an affordable coverage and then supplement it with a top-up or super top-up family floater plan. These plans would increase the coverage level while the premiums would be low
• Buy a plan with comprehensive coverage benefits suitable to the needs of your family members. For instance, if you are a young couple and would be starting a family in the future, look for maternity cover in the plan.

Keep these points in mind and buy a comprehensive family floater plan. Gift your family access to quality healthcare without the medical costs becoming a burden on your head.

Read more about Healthcare costs are rising. Do you have health Insurance?
 
Got more questions with regards to Family health insurance? Check our our video

The National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) conducted a health survey in the first half of 2014 to find out the burden of healthcare costs in India. Here’s what the survey found –

Source: Livemint

This was way five years ago in 2014. In recent times, India’s health minister, Mr J. P. Nadda stated that India’s expenditure on health sector has increased. Compared to 1.2% of the GDP in 2013-14, it has increased to 1.4% of the GDP in 2017-18. (Source: The Economic Times )

These numbers indicate that healthcare costs have increased. Along with such costs, lifestyle ailments have also increased over the last decade. More and more individuals are facing some of the other forms of illness for which medical assistance is needed. Medical inflation has also become a common phenomenon and treatments and medicine are gradually becoming unaffordable for the common middle-class masses of the country. How can average individuals, therefore, afford quality healthcare in an age when diseases have become common?

The answer is quite simple actually – through a health insurance plan. Health insurance plans are designed with an aim to pay for medical expenses which seem unaffordable. Given the increase in life expectancy, increase in the incidence of ailments and the high medical costs having health insurance has become a must. The plan promises to take care of the expenses which incur if you are hospitalised for a medical contingency. Here are some of the most important benefits provided by health insurance plans –

• Different variants

Whether you want a plan to cover your hospital bills or a plan to pay you a lump sum benefit in case of a critical illness, health insurance offers you a solution for every healthcare need. There are indemnity health plans which pay your medical expenses, family floater plans to cover your whole family, top-up plans for increasing your coverage at affordable rates, critical illness plans for covering dreaded illnesses and other plans for different needs making health plans universally relevant.

• Comprehensive coverage

Health plans have evolved in recent times and provide all-inclusive coverage. You can find attractive coverage features like sum insured restoration, OPD coverage, coverage for AYUSH treatments, air ambulance cover, etc. in modern day health plans.

• Affordable premiums

With the different variants and comprehensive coverage offered you might think that health insurance plans would be expensive. You are wrong. The premiums for health plans are quite affordable given the coverage offered. Moreover, there are different types of discounts as well which are allowed by health plans. These discounts further help in reducing the premium considerably and making the health plan easily affordable.

• Tax benefit

Health plans also give you a tax advantage. The premiums paid to buy health insurance policies are allowed as a tax deduction under Section 80D. You can avail a maximum deduction of INR 25, 000 in one financial year. This limit increases to INR 50, 000 for a senior citizen. Moreover, if you pay the premium for a health plan covering your senior citizen parents, you can avail an additional tax deduction of INR 50, 000. Thus, health plans not only provide unparalleled coverage, but they also help in saving your taxes.

Now that you know that health insurance is important, how can you prepare yourself against any medical contingency?

If you are still wondering how here are the steps which you need to take –

• Get a health insurance cover

The point of stressing on the importance of health insurance is to educate you that health insurance is needed for high healthcare costs. Thus, the first step is, obviously, to buy a health insurance plan.

• What is the role of health insurance plans?

Health insurance comes into play when a medical contingency strikes. If you are hospitalised or undergo a day care treatment, the plan becomes active and pays the expenses incurred. Even the ambulance costs, pre-hospitalisation expenses, post hospitalisation expenses, organ donor expenses are also covered under the plan. Thus, the plan plays an active role in paying medical expenses.

• What kind of cover can you expect?

Health insurance plans come in different variants. The cover depends on the variant selected. If you buy an indemnity health plan for yourself or your family you get coverage for the medical expenses which are incurred. If, on the other hand, you buy a critical illness plan you get coverage against major illnesses. Disease-specific health plans cover specific ailments while senior citizen plans are meant for senior citizens and their healthcare expenses. So, the type of plan you select would determine the cover you would get.

• What are the types of health insurance plans?

Health insurance plans come in different variants. These include the following –

• Individual plans which cover a single individual
• Family floater plans which cover all family members in one plan
• Critical illness plans which cover major illnesses
• Disease-specific plans which cover specified illnesses
• Senior citizen plans which cover senior citizens
• Top-up and super top-up plans which help boost the existing insurance coverage

• What is the right cover you need to buy?

The cover should depend on your requirements. If you want to cover your whole family, buy a family floater plan having sufficient sum insured. For your senior citizen parents, buy a senior citizen plan. A critical illness plan is also a must to protect against the rising incidence of major illnesses. When you buy a plan, make sure to have the coverage features which are required.

• Do’s and Don’ts when buying health insurance
• Cover all your family members when buying the plan
• Choose a sum insured which is suitable for your coverage needs
• Compare different plans before buying one  to choose the best plan
• Understand the coverage and exclusions thoroughly
• Don’t judge a plan by its premium alone. Always choose a plan based on its coverage and not on premium

Do you know what is day care treatment do check out our short video below:

• When to buy health insurance?

You should buy health insurance at the earliest. Buying the plan at a younger age ensures comprehensive coverage at the lowest premium.

The increase in medical costs cannot be avoided but you can prevent these costs from eating into your savings by buying a health insurance policy. The policy would give you financial security in a medical emergency and take care of the costs incurred. You can, therefore, have mental peace and also quality healthcare at your disposal.

Read more about How to save income tax in 2019

This is the age of smart apps and smart gadgets which have made our lives more advanced and simplified. Technology and the internet have brought about a major change in our lives as everything is now available quite literally on your fingertips. Even in the case of health insurance, technology has digitalised the whole process of buying and selling health insurance policies. Insurance companies are now offering their plans online. They have even developed mobile apps which can be downloaded on your Smartphones and used to buy, track and monitor health insurance policies.

Besides technological advancements, the importance of healthy living has increased in recent times as people are increasingly making efforts to keep themselves healthy. Organic living, trendy exercise activities like Pilates and Zumba, vegan diets and other trends have taken a centre stage. Promoting these are smart wearables like fitness bands and smartwatches, health-related mobile apps and blogs and modern day living is all about healthy living. With healthy living being the modern day mantra and technology providing everything at your disposal, the health insurance market has seen a paradigm shift. Insurance companies have understood the concern of millennials to lead a healthy life and have, as such, launched their own health programs. Did you know about it?

Besides offering a whole lot of coverage benefits, health insurance plans also offer various value-added benefits. These benefits are wellness programs and initiatives which help you maintain and lead a healthy life. You get personalised health assessments, on-call doctors, lifestyle advice, health advice, etc. through these wellness programs. Besides promoting good health, these wellness programs are also aimed at reducing the claim experience of the insurance company. As you live healthily, there are low chances of your falling sick and making a claim in your health insurance policy. Because the insurer’s claim incidence reduces, you are offered premium discounts on renewal premiums. A win-win situation, don’t you think?

When you come to think of these value-added health programs, the first instance which you can see is the one offered by Apollo Munich. In many of its health insurance plans, Apollo Munich offers a ‘Stay Active’ benefit. Under this benefit, you are awarded a premium discount if you take a specified number of steps in one policy year. If you are wondering how your steps are counted, Apollo Munich has an app for that purpose. You just have to download the app on your Smartphone and when you buy a policy, the app starts counting the number of steps you take. Your steps are recorded in the app and after a year when the policy gets renewed, you get a premium discount based on the number of steps you have taken during the year. Isn’t it a perfect combination of technology and healthy living? Another example is Max Bupa’s Go Active Health Coach which offers discounts for healthy living.

With insurance companies offering specialised health programs, apps and premium discounts for healthy living, who wouldn’t be motivated to lead a healthy life? So, use the latest technology to your advantage and make your health insurance policy smart with attractive premium discounts.

Read more about How to save income tax in 2019

Read more about 8 financial instruments you can quickly buy online to save tax in India

Health insurance plans provide a comprehensive scope of coverage. You not only get coverage for hospitalisation related expenses but also for expenses which are incurred before and after hospitalisation as well. Moreover, day care treatments, domiciliary treatments, organ donor expenses, AYUSH treatments, etc. are also covered in most health plans. However, though the coverage under health plans is quite comprehensive, it is not all-inclusive. There are some medical expenses and treatments which are not covered by most health insurance plans. These are called exclusions and the list of exclusions usually remains the same across most health insurance policies.

Many of you don’t know about the common health insurance exclusions but you should. You should read the policy document of your health insurance policy to know what is covered and, more importantly, what is not covered under the plan. Knowing the exclusions would help you understand the exact coverage of your health insurance plan. Moreover, you can avoid making a claim for excluded expenses and suffer claim rejections. So, here are some of the most common health insurance exclusions for you to know –

• Pre-existing conditions

If you suffer from any medical complications at the time of buying the policy, such complications are called pre-existing conditions. Coverage for pre-existing conditions is not available from the start of the policy. Such conditions are excluded for 2-4 policy years after which they are covered. So, if you suffer from any pre-existing condition and make a claim for the same during the waiting period, the claim would be rejected.

• Cosmetic treatments

LASIK surgeries, cosmetic reconstruction and other cosmetic treatments are not included in the scope of coverage unless they are medically necessary. For instance, if you want plastic surgery, the surgery would not be covered in your health plan. However, if you suffer from third-degree burns and plastic surgery becomes a necessity, the same would be covered.

• HIV/AIDS or other venereal diseases

Sexually transmitted diseases are not covered in health insurance plans

• Attempted suicide or self-inflicted injuries

If you deliberately harm yourself or attempt suicide, the medical expenses incurred consequently would not be covered

• Congenital diseases

Congenital diseases are also not covered under health insurance plans

• Dental treatments

Dental treatment form part of OPD coverage and are usually excluded unless they become medically necessary because of an accidental injury. In some plans, however, OPD coverage is available and dental treatments might be covered under OPD expenses.

• Pregnancy-related expenses

Health plans exclude maternity treatments and related expenses unless maternity cover is built in the plan or taken as an add-on.

Know more about Maternity health insurance.

• Mental disorders

Treatments for mental disorders are not covered

• War and related perils

Injuries or medical expenses which result due to war, riots, mutiny, civil unrest, nuclear contamination and other related perils are not covered.

• Unproven treatments

Treatments which are unproven, experimental or unconventional are not covered under health insurance policies.

These are the most common exclusions which you can find in health insurance plans. You should read your policy document and understand the exclusions which are applicable in your health insurance plan. After all, you should know what your health plan covers and what it doesn’t.

Read more about Day care treatment vs Outpatient treatment.

Read more about How to choose a health insurance plan?