Imagine getting sick while travelling and not having ample resources to manage medical expenses. Have you ever postponed a medical treatment based on funds available? Get health protection with the right insurance!
The cost of healthcare facilities in India is at an all-time high today, limiting individuals' access to necessary health cover and increasing the financial burden of quality healthcare for everyone.
Other than financial support, there are many other health insurance advantages that will ease your wellness journey in case of medical emergencies.
In this blog, we will discuss the various benefits of health insurance and the necessary tips for choosing the required health protection for maximum financial security.
Benefits of Health Insurance
Financial Security with Health Cover for Emergencies
One of the top benefits of health insurance is the financial security you receive for unforeseen medical treatments and emergencies. It acts as a significant financial safety net that ensures proper treatments without the hassle of prior fund management.
Moreover, you get the required medical assistance in time without compromising quality, even with the rising medical costs.
No Age Barriers
Another advantage of health insurance is that there is no prerequisite of age when it comes to investment in health insurance. In fact, the sooner you invest in a health insurance plan, the higher the chances are of receiving discounted premiums at the time of purchase.
You can be as young as 18 or as old as 65, but there is still a wide range of plans available for everyone to purchase to ensure your health is in check.
Customisable Premium for Health Protection
Another crucial health insurance advantage is customisation flexibility for all policyholders. There is no one-size-fits-all system when it comes to health insurance.
You can customise any of the health insurance policies available based on your specific health cover needs and budget to ensure that the monthly premium value suits your financial capacity without any compromise.
Claim Convenience
One of the most helpful benefits of health insurance is the availability of convenient claim settlements. You can choose between a cashless claim and a reimbursement claim as required.
With cashless claim convenience, you do not have to pay anything from your pocket if you opt for sufficient cover. You can go to any hospital of your choice in India, and the insurer settles the incurred medical expenses with the hospital directly.
For a reimbursement claim, you can get treated at any hospital of your choice and file for a reimbursement claim by submitting original medical treatment invoices and other required documents to the insurer.
Easy Portability
The portability of health insurance means you can change your insurance policy from one insurance company to another or one plan to another without losing the
benefits of health insurance that you have accumulated. This is as per the new rules of the IRDAI (Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India).
Your new insurer should give you the credit for the waiting period for pre-existing conditions that you received from your previous insurer. Your new insurer must insure you at least up to the sum insured under the old policy.
A required condition is that you must port the policy only during the renewal so that the new insurance period will be with a new insurer.
Comprehensive Coverage
Depending on the type of health insurance you purchase, you get comprehensive coverage for a wide range of health and treatment-related expenses. Along with coverage for in-patient treatment and pre and post-hospitalisation fees, most health insurance policies include many other inclusions.
You also get health cover for ambulance services, online or e-consultations, organ transplants, lifetime renewability, preventive health check-ups, alternative treatments such as AYUSH (Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy) and Naturopathy, and maternity expenses.
Wide Range of Add-ons
One of the best health insurance advantages is the availability of a wide range of add-ons that you can combine with your base policy coverage to increase financial protection as per specific needs. Some of the add-ons include -
Restoration benefit cover
Hospital cash cover
Consumable cover
Vaccination cover
Child care cover
Home care treatment cover
Second opinion cover
Companion cover
Convalescence cover
Air ambulance cover
Vision correction cover, etc.
No Claim Bonus
No Claim Bonus (NCB) is the reward given by your insurer for consecutive claim-free years on your health insurance.
There are two ways through which insurers provide NCB on their health insurance policies—by offering an increase in the sum assured or by offering a discount on the renewal premium. You can transfer the accumulated NCB on a particular health insurance policy to a new health policy provided by a different insurer.
Tax-Related Health Insurance Benefits
Under Section 80D of the Income Tax Act, the premium that you pay towards health insurance is exempted from your income tax liability for a particular financial year.
For individual plans, you can benefit from an exemption of up to ₹25,000 for yourself, your spouse, and dependent children. For dependent parents, this exemption is up to ₹25,000 if they are less than 60 years of age and ₹50,000 if they are older than 60 years.
You can claim a total deduction of ₹75,000, consisting of ₹25,000 on the premium paid for self, spouse and dependent children and ₹50,000 on the premium paid for parents. If both you and your parents are senior citizens, the maximum deduction that you can claim would be ₹1,00,000 = ₹50,000 + ₹50,000.
Scenario |
Deduction Limit for Self, Spouse and Children (Rs) |
Deduction Limit for Dependent Parents (Rs) |
Deduction under 80D (Rs) |
All members below 60 years | 25,000 | 25,000 | 50,000 |
Self, Spouse and Children below 60 years with parents (senior citizen) | 25,000 | 50,000 | 75,000 |
Policyholder and parents are senior citizens | 50,000 | 50,000 | 1,00,000 |
Easy Lifelong Health Protection Renewals
Earlier, many insurers did not provide insurance coverage after a particular age. However, now, the IRDAI has made guaranteed renewability compulsory for health insurance policies so that you can get the benefits of the policy throughout your life with a lifetime renewability option.
There would be no restriction on age. You can renew the tenure of the plans for a lifetime without any fresh medical declaration at each renewal. You would be eligible to buy a new health policy even at the age of 65 years.
Variety of Plans
To ensure there is a plan for everyone, the types of health insurance plans available today allow you to choose carefully based on your needs and budget for maximum coverage for specific medical needs.
The list of plans available today includes the following -
Health Insurance Policy Types |
Suitable for |
Individual Health Insurance | Individuals below the age of 65 |
Family Floater Health Insurance | Families (self, spouse, children, and parents) |
International Health Insurance Policy | Individuals travelling outside India for preplanned medical treatments |
Senior Citizen Health Insurance Policy | Individuals above the age of 65 |
Maternity Health Insurance Policy | For new mothers and pregnant women |
Top Up Health Insurance Policy | Policyholders looking for additional coverage for medical emergencies |
Critical Illness Health Insurance Policy | Anyone with critical illnesses or life-threatening diseases |
Accidental Health Insurance Policy | Individuals residing in accident-prone areas |
Group Health Insurance Policy | For a group of people, like employees of a company |
How to Choose the Right Health Cover?
Consider the following factors when selecting the best health insurance coverage for you and your family:
Maximum coverage - Look for a plan that provides maximum coverage, daycare and domiciliary treatments. Specific treatments such as cataract surgery require hospitalisation for less than 24 hours. Again, for bone fractures, treatments can be done from home instead of in a hospital.
Eligibility - Certain policies may have attractive features related to healthcare, provide extensive coverage, and NCB, but with a limit on the enrolment age. Check the eligibility criteria for various health insurance plans and select policies with a maximum renewal age and lifetime coverage.
Waiting period - This is the minimum period between the issuance of the policy and availing of the benefits. You may find policies without a waiting period. Others have a waiting period ranging from 30 days to one year or more. Select policies with short waiting periods.
Exclusions - A policy, no matter how extensive, would have a limit up to which it can cover. Before purchasing a policy, go through the exclusions carefully to avoid confusion in future. Buy policies with the minimum number of exclusions.
Premium - Do not choose policies based on low premiums only. Generally, low-priced policies have limited coverage or other limitations. Choose a policy with maximum coverage at an affordable premium.
Conclusion
Health insurance is a significant investment in a financially secure future, especially given the rising unpredictable nature of health issues and diseases.
After understanding the various benefits of health insurance policies, it is crucial to safeguard your health and savings with the right plan for added peace of mind and convenience during medical emergencies.
Reliance General Insurance offers numerous
health insurance plans tailored to suit the specific needs of individuals of all age groups. Moreover, our plans offer ample customisation flexibility and comprehensive coverage to ensure you are well protected from unforeseen medical expenses.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a hospital cash cover add-on in health insurance?
A daily hospital cash benefit or daily allowance provides a lump sum amount every day in case of hospitalisation. You can use it as per your requirement or for compensating the loss of income during the period of hospitalisation.
This cover does not require supporting bills, as a valid hospitalisation of at least 24 to 48 hours is sufficient to qualify for this benefit.
Can you give some tips to reduce health insurance premiums?
To reduce your health insurance premium, you must assess your coverage needs to avoid paying for health cover you do not require, compare different plans to choose the one that aligns with your budget and needs, assess the co-payment and deductible limits offered by different insurers, follow a healthy lifestyle, and avoid making claims for minor medical needs to benefit from NCB.
Are there any exclusions for health insurance?
Yes, depending on the type of health insurance plan, there can be various exclusions. However, some of the common exclusions include cover for self-inflicted injuries, specific illnesses, dental treatment, cosmetic treatments, war, nuclear attack, etc.
