Over the past few years, there has been inflation in all sectors, including the medical field. This is resulting in a hike in the price of most health care treatments. It is now difficult for the common man to find access to the best possible ways of treating themselves or their loved ones. Quite often, in the case of medical emergencies, medical bills, or even on routine checkups, worry people.
This is where the importance of having medical insurance comes in. Medical Insurance, or health insurance, is a coverage that your insurance company gives for a premium you pay. Such plans are known to cover medical services or rather bills related to consultation, hospitalization, surgeries and much more. A good insurance plan may even cover small bills such as medicines required during your stay in the hospital, pre- and post-hospitalisation bills, hospital room charges, and doctors’ fees.
This is the reason why one should be doing health insurance planning quite seriously and early in their life. The sooner a person has access to one of the best health coverage plans, the better it is to stand against unforeseen circumstances. For those who do not know how to go about it or where to begin, the points below are meant to assist you.
Uncover Some of the Best Health Coverage Plans
The very first step of health insurance planning is to know about the different types of policies available in the market. They are:
Individual Insurance Plans
This is the most common insurance plan, and in most cases, people have already heard of such plans. In this type of medical insurance policy, the medical expenses of a single person are covered by the insurer. This person is usually the same person who purchased the plan. The premium amount in such individual plans is decided based on a variety of factors like medical history, income, age, and so on.
Family Floater Insurance Plans
Just like the term implies, with such a type of medical insurance, the whole family is protected. In this kind of plan, the insured amount falls on the higher side. The reason behind this is that the health insurance has to be shared among the members of the family.
This type of health insurance plan will be a good option for those who don’t want different policies for various members of their family. Such plans are also referred to as cost-effective when compared to an individual plan, wherein you have to buy a separate policy for each member of your family. Those who wish to secure the future of their family once and for all should check it out the same.
Senior Citizen Insurance plans
Usually, as a person gets older, their health becomes weaker as their immune system does not work as well as before. This results in a lot of health-related problems, most of which no one can predict. Parents’ health insurance can be part of your initial considerations. Such a plan is designed for individuals over sixty years old, and in most cases, the premium paid is higher. Using this plan, the medical needs of the elderly will be completely taken care of.
Personal Accident Insurance Plans
No one knows when an accident can occur, whether in your life or the life of someone you cherish. However, making sure that you have a financial protection plan can be a game-changer at such times. When starting with health insurance planning, starting with such a plan is wise as it typically covers a person who has met with an accident. Mainly, this plan proves to be helpful against the following events:
- Partial Disability,
- Total Disability,
- Death due to an accident
Mediclaim
Having this kind of policy is a wise move if you intend to take the initial steps towards health insurance planning. For instances that would require immediate hospitalization, this plan opens access to many treatment plans.
A policy like this ensures that you are financially reimbursed for the hospital stay that was necessitated by health-related emergencies. By the nature of things, these plans keep the health coverage at the highest level as the arrangement leaves one worry-free, both mentally and physically. Moreover, a policy like this supports cashless transactions, in which you need not fret over the bills, as the case will be handled by your insurance company.
Group Health Insurance
The name simply suggests that this type of health insurance policy is meant for a group of people. Such health insurance plans tend to be very comprehensive in their coverage. Generally, an employer will give this to their employee and, on rare occasions, they may even extend the coverage to the dependents, such as your spouse. Medical cover for hospitalisation, including maternity, childcare and outpatient treatments, are some of the benefits under such plans.
The main advantage of group health insurance is that it is very cheap, as companies often subsidise the rates. Because they cover all members of a community, these schemes are also known for being very inclusive. It is also a plus for the employer and employee in terms of being easy to administer from both sides.
Maternity insurance plans
If you are looking for one of the best health coverage plans for women, specific health insurance plans exist in the market for their benefit. Such plans often support you through pregnancy as well as childbirth. You can expect them to cover not only prenatal and post-natal care but also the delivery costs, ambulance charges, and even medical expenses of your newborn for a short period of time.
But since such plans often have a waiting period, it is a good idea to get one ahead of time so that you are completely covered when the need arises. Another option is to enhance your current health insurance plan by adding maternity benefits to it.
Factors to Consider When Choosing One of the Best Health Coverage Plans
- Select an appropriate amount of sum insured for sound financial coverage: The sum insured is the highest amount that the insurance company is willing to pay for coverage in a year. If a small amount is chosen, it may lead to out-of-pocket spending in case of a medical emergency. At least ₹5-10 lakh coverage is required for individuals, and for families, it may be ₹10-20 lakh. Age, health status, family health history, place of residence, and increasing medical inflation are some factors that need to be taken into consideration while choosing the amount of coverage.
- Search for policies that provide comprehensive coverage: An appropriate policy should provide coverage for more than just hospitalization costs. It should provide coverage for room charges, doctor fees, surgery, diagnostic procedures, ambulance fees, daycare procedures, and pre- and post-hospitalisation expenses.
- Think about family floater plans for broader and more economical coverage: Family floater plans enable several members of a family to be covered under a single sum insured. This eliminates the need for multiple policies and consequently makes premium costs more economical. Family floater plans are ideal for young couples and families with dependent children.
- Steer clear of policies with sub-limits and co-payments: Sub-limits pertain to the claim amount that is not allowed for certain treatments, while co-payments refer to the cost that the policyholder must pay. Opting for policies with minimal or no sub-limits and co-payments is ideal for better financial coverage and minimising out-of-pocket expenses.
- Ensure the policy has lifetime renewability: Lifetime renewability allows the policyholder to benefit from the policy without any restrictions based on age.
- Verify waiting periods for pre-existing medical conditions: Most health insurance policies have waiting periods before pre-existing medical conditions can be covered. Selecting a policy with shorter waiting periods ensures faster access to benefits when needed.
- Compare several policies before selecting one: Comparing several policies ensures the best policy is selected. Key considerations for comparison include benefits offered in the policy, premiums, waiting periods, exclusions, additional benefits, and network hospitals.
