8 Things to know before Buying Health Insurance Plan or Mediclaim Policy in India

Buying Health Insurance Plan? Here are important things to keep in mind before buying Mediclaim Policy for your family.

Health Insurance: Here are important things to keep in mind before taking out a mediclaim policy.

There are many types of health insurance plans available in the market, so people should be careful when buying any plan.

As you know, life is full of uncertainties and a medical crisis is one of them. With the rising expenses of healthcare in India, buying a health insurance plan is almost inevitable.

But with so many features and plans, and options available in the market, it can be confusing to find the right mediclaim policy for you.

Don’t worry, we’ve made this easy for you. Here is a list of things you can consider to buy the best health insurance plan for you and your family

Suggested Read: 10 Health Insurance Tips for you

Due to the corona pandemic, people are now realizing the importance of mediclaim policy.  People are now starting to take out health insurance cover to meet hospital expenses.

Today, there are many types of health insurance plans available in the market, so people should be careful in choosing any mediclaim policy and choose the right health insurance policy for themselves. Health Insurance cover greatly reduces the hospital expenses.

Here are some things to keep in mind when taking out health insurance Plan.

1. Cashless hospitalization benefits, No Claim Bonus – NCB limit

Health insurance companies in India typically link to network hospitals where policy holder can get cashless treatment in the event of a medical emergency.

Cashless facility saves you from the mediclaim file process that is required at the time of admission and claim. In addition, the insurance company pays the treatment bill directly to the hospital.

So you don’t have to manage the file for reimbursement and money also. It will be helpful if you check with your insurance company for a list of listed hospitals and find out all the network hospitals near you.

2. How much should be covered

The first question that comes to mind is how much health insurance cover will be enough for my family? “This is not an easy answer,”  We can’t predict what kind of disease we may have in the future..

Broadly speaking, it is understood in such a way that if we get sick in the future, which hospital can we go to for treatment. What is the cost of bypass surgery in that hospital?

At least one should plan to take medical cover considering the cost of bypass surgery in the hospital.

3. No-Claim-Discount or No Claim Bonus

Most health insurance offers specify the No Claim Bonus – NCB limit. And the increase in the health coverage would depend on the limit that is specified by the insurance company.

Personal medical history

There is another way to understand how much your health insurance cover should be. You can also get this idea based on your medical history, your age, and lifestyle of family members. How you feel about your health in the future depends largely on these factors.

4. An adult should have a cover of Rs 10 lakh

Overall, insurance experts recommend that adults (over 21) should have a minimum cover of Rs 10 lakh.

Also, as they grow, the cover should also increase. Even at age 20, many people need medical insurance.

Premiums are cheaper when you are younger and in better health. As we get older, many diseases start to surround us, and then the premium becomes expensive.

5. Claim Process

Simple claim processing is a boon at the settlement of health claims. Before buying mediclaim policy, check the policy terms and go through the health insurance claim process followed by the insurance company.

You can read reviews of customers online, do some research, and choose a health insurance company known for its customer service and seamless claim settlement services.

6. Coverage varies with family status

You should choose coverage according to your family situation. For example, you have a family after marriage.

In this scenario, you should choose a family floater plan. It covers both husband and wife. You can change the family floater plan as the family grows.

Despite having a family floater plan, personal cover is necessary. If a woman does not have a personal policy and is attached to her husband in a family floater plan, in such a situation, the woman may face difficulties in case of any discrepancy in the married life.

Regardless of how good the relationship between husband and wife is, personal health insurance policy must be purchased.

7. Pre and post hospitalization coverage

Most health insurance plans cover medical expenses incurred during hospitalization. Buy a mediclaim policy that covers pre- and post-hospital costs to save on medications, ambulance charges, doctor’s fees, medical tests, etc.

8. Compare Premiums

There are many online aggregators like policy bazaar, policyx, easypolicy, my insurance club which help you compare the premiums and policies in terms of features, benefits, premiums, reviews, claim settlement ratio, renewal age, etc.

It is essential to compare premium as well as the plan. Buying a mediclaim policy without weighing all the options available in the market is like inviting pain.

Now that you are aware of things that you need to keep in mind while buying mediclaim policy or health insurance plan, why wait?

Health Insurance Companies in India

Following are the IRDAI Approved health insurance companies in India.

• Aditya Birla
• Acko General
• HDFC ERGO
• Bajaj Allianz
• Bharti AXA
• Cholamandalam MS
• Edelweiss
• Future Generali
• ICICI LOMBARD
• IFFCO TOKIO
• Kotak Mahindra
• Liberty
• Max Bupa
• Magma HDI
• National Insurance Co. Ltd.
• Reliance
• Care Health (formerly known as Religare)
• SBI General Insurance Co. Ltd.
• Royal Sundaram
• Shriram
• Star Health
• Tata AIG
• The New India
• The Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd.
• United India
• Universal Sompo