Healthcare expenses can be overwhelming, so buying affordable health insurance is a lifesaving decision. It offers cashless treatment and peace of mind in medical emergencies. Keep reading to learn how to navigate an affordable health insurance plan and find the best one for you and your family.
How to Find the Best Affordable Health Insurance Plan?
Here is a step-by-step guide to choosing the best insurance plan:
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Access Your Needs
If you want insurance for yourself, you must choose individual health insurance plans. In addition, if you are seeking medical coverage for your family, you can opt for a family floater plan.
Family floater plans are more affordable and cover all family members, from children to senior persons. Hence, before purchasing any health insurance plan, consider your health status and the pre-existing conditions of your family members.
2.Compare Plans
To find an ideal and affordable health insurance, you need to compare several medical insurance schemes. Evaluate insurance plans based on affordability, coverage, sum insured, network hospitals, and waiting periods.
You can check the ratings and customer reviews of the insurance company to make an informed decision on whether you are buying good claim processing and customer service.
3.Check Sum Insured
The details of the insurance policy, especially the sum insured, need to be verified. By checking the sum insured, an individual can determine how much their insurer promises to pay for claims.
You will come to understand adequate coverage for clinical expenses according to your medical needs and avoid overpayments.
4.Check Premium
Checking premiums is important to purchase affordable medical insurance, as it helps find the right balance between coverage and cost. Premiums directly impact your financial commitments to maintain an insurance policy through periodic payments. To accurately assess these costs and compare different options, a Health insurance Premium calculator is an invaluable tool.
Choosing a low-premium insurance can be a great move if you are young and buying insurance early. To purchase a family insurance plan, you need the right premium to have sufficient coverage for all medical expenses and avoid out-of-pocket expenses.
5.Check Coverage
Everyone should check the coverage for medical expenses. Individuals must check coverage related to costs for surgeries, pre- and post-hospitalisation, annual capping limit, organ donor and transplant expenses, and domiciliary hospitalisation.
Especially for families, you can opt for an insurance plan that covers modern treatment, home care benefits, and 24-hour teleconsultation.
6.Consider Riders and Add-ons
Considering add-ons or riders can improve your insurance coverage without making any out-of-pocket payments. You must check and consider add-ons, such as personal accident cover, maternity benefits, critical illness cover, etc. Moreover, riders like the global cover rider and the hospital cash rider.
For example, a personal accident cover add-on will provide you with financial assistance, covering treatment expenses for accidental injuries.
7.Check the Waiting Period
The waiting period varies depending on policy type and dictates how long it takes to provide coverage benefits, especially for specific ailments and pre-existing conditions. Most plans include a pre-existing disease waiting period of 1 - 3 years, after which you can claim medical expenses incurred.
In this context, choose a plan with a minimum waiting period for pre-existing disease when purchasing insurance for your parents.
8.Choose Plans with Zero Co-Pay
To invest in an affordable plan, consider insurance plans with zero co-payments. Co-payments are the claim amount that the policyholder needs to pay during claim settlement.
It will increase your financial burden and out-of-pocket expenses. Hence, by choosing medical insurance without a co-payment, you will be facilitated with no upfront payments on doctor visits, daycare procedures, etc.
9.Read the Fine Print before the Investment
Individuals must check the exclusions and claim settlement policy of their chosen insurance plan before investing in it. In addition, they must review and understand the terms and conditions of the insurance policy.
What Types of Health Insurance Plans are Available?
Different types of health insurance plans have separate benefits, so choose a policy that suits your needs after knowing their types.
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Indemnity Health Insurance Plans
It facilitates the compensation of actual incurred healthcare expenses in reimbursement and cashless treatment options.
For example, a comprehensive insurance policy is available on an individual or floater basis to any person between 18 and 65 years old. It covers hospital expenses, surgical costs, pre-existing disease treatment expenses, cumulative bonuses, delivery benefits, and automatic sum restoration.
2.Fixed Benefit Health Insurance Plans
These insurance plans offer a lump sum amount for critical illness treatment, such as chronic kidney disease, brain tumour, cancer, etc.
For example, the Critical Illness Multipay Insurance Policy is a fixed-benefit health insurance plan for major diseases, such as heart failure, stroke, and organ transplantation. This policy covers cancer insurance with a 90-day waiting period for claim settlement after the policy purchase date.
3.Top-Up Health Insurance Plans
It provides additional coverage for medical expenses beyond the standard health insurance plan.
For example, the Super Surplus Insurance Policy provides an affordable premium range for high amounts of insured options. This insurance includes enhanced coverage, lower premiums, lifelong renewal options, wellness services, and e-medical services with a modern treatment facility.
Why Does Everyone Need a Health Insurance Plan?
Medical care and treatment expenses are rapidly growing, which can drain financial savings in emergencies. Having an affordable health insurance policy is indispensable to individuals.
1.Financial Safety
A health insurance policy provides financial security against treatments and diagnostic expenses for policyholders and their family members.
2.Critical Illness Coverage
Insurance policies cover the treatment costs of 37 critical illnesses such as heart attack, stroke, chronic kidney disease, cancer, liver, brain tumour, etc. Individuals can avail themselves of a lump sum upon diagnosis and recovery from life-threatening conditions.
3.Covers Pre-existing Illnesses
If the policyholder was suffering from any health conditions before purchasing any insurance, the policy will cover the treatment costs of pre-existing diseases.
4.Annual Health Check-Up Facility
An affordable medical insurance plan facilitates an annual health check-up. You can track and prevent serious health conditions. A periodic health check-up is important for managing optimal health issues through early detection and eliminating further progression of a disease.
Final Words
Health insurance protects policyholders and their family members from financial instability, hospital bills, and medication expenses. Before choosing an affordable health insurance plan, everyone must consider coverage for critical and pre-existing illnesses, add-ons, riders, premiums, waiting periods, and sum insured, with a zero-copayment policy. To make health insurance more accessible, many providers now offer the option of Health insurance on EMI.
Media Contact
Company Name: Star Health and Allied
Contact Person: Anand Shankar Roy
Email: Send Email
City: New Delhi
Country: India
Website: https://www.starhealth.in/