Health Coverage Worldwide
Cashless treatment
No claim bonus wherever applicable
Network of Hospitals
Life time renewability
Co-payment
Tax benefit under section 80D
With every passing day, insurance companies are becoming more inclusive and including every category of coverage into the policies. These integrated policies are going beyond offering coverage for an individual, and they provide cover for all the family under a single plan.
Insurance providers nowadays offer critical illness insurance, either as a standalone plan or as a rider. Such an insurance policy provides coverage against life-threatening diseases such as kidney failure, bone marrow transplant, stroke, and loss of limbs, among others. Upon diagnosis of any of the critical illness from the predetermined list of your policy, you are entitled to receive a lump sum amount. This amount may be used to meet your illness-related treatment costs, daily expenses, and any other financial obligations.
With the changes introduced by the IRDAI, the renewal age for health insurance policies can be extended to provide coverage. Today, many health insurance companies offer special plans for senior citizens, and they don't have a cap on the age limit.
Cumulative Bonus is the reward that insurance companies offer you when you do not raise any claim request in a policy year. It is like the no-claim bonus in car insurance and the benefits that you can reap varies from insurer to insurer. Some insurance companies offer a discount on the premium, while others offer an increase in the sum assured. Typically, most insurance companies offer a hike of 5% to 50% in the sum assured.
Few insurance companies have also started taking claim requests for an outpatient department or OPD claims. The concept of this claim settlement is still very new, and very few companies are offering it currently.
One of the most crucial features of a health insurance policy is the cashless facility. The cashless facility helps you to get the best treatment without spending a single Rupee for it. You have to show the cashless card provided by the insurance company at the hospital, and the insurer will directly settle the bill with the hospital. However, you must know that you can benefit from the cashless treatment feature only if you seek treatment from one of the network hospitals of the insurer.
If you are not satisfied with the services rendered by your current insurance provider, you can transfer or port it to another insurance provider. Changing companies generally do not have any impact on your no claim bonus.
If you have purchased a health insurance plan, you can avail tax benefits under Section 80D; the deduction is applicable on the premium you pay for the policy. You can get a maximum deduction of Rs.25,000 if you bought a policy that covers you and your spouse and children.
Many health insurance policies do not provide maternity cover. Now if you add a maternity cover rider with such a policy, then the rider will cover certain expenses during childbirth. The coverage will primarily be for delivery expenses but may be restricted for pre and post-delivery expenses. It is also possible that other expenses like newborn baby expenses or vaccinations might not be covered at all. However, this rider can be availed after the waiting period, which is usually 24 months but can extend up to 72 months also in some plans.
A policyholder can buy a critical illness rider with his health insurance policy. And on being diagnosed with one of the listed critical illnesses in the policy, the insurance company will pay him the sum assured for the rider. Say you have a Rs 10 lakh health insurance policy and with that, you have a Rs 5 lakh critical illness rider. Now on being diagnosed with one of the critical illnesses in the policy, you would be paid Rs 5 lakh in a lump sum. Critical illness riders can also be bought with term insurance plans or as a standalone policy
Under this rider, if a policyholder is disabled due to an accident then, the insurer will pay him the sum assured (totally or partially) for the rider. However, the amount that would be paid would depend on the severity of the injury. In case the policyholder is permanently disabled, i.e. there is loss of sight (for both eyes), loss of two limbs, loss of one limb and one eye, and he/she is unable to work, then the insurance company will pay him/her the entire sum assured. But, in case he/she is partially disabled and can fend for himself/herself, then the insurance company will pay the part of the sum assured (the amount will be determined by the insurer) depending on the injury. For instance, if the policyholder loses one eye or one limb, he/she would receive 50% of the sum assured. But, if he/she loses hearing in one ear, then he/she will receive 15% of the sum assured.
Many insurance policies come with a cap on room rent. For example, suppose you have a health insurance policy with a room rent cap of Rs 2,000 per day. Now, if you are hospitalized and for which the per day room rent is Rs 4,000, then you have to pay the extra amount from your pocket. Now if you add a room rent waiver rider with your policy you can avail the room you of your choice (subject to minor conditions like it cannot be a suite) without paying extra money.
Under this rider, in case of hospitalization, the insured receives a cash amount for all the days he/she has been hospitalized. The amount differs from policy to policy. This acts as a compensatory allowance for loss of pay during hospitalization. However, for availing most daily hospital cash plans you need to be hospitalized for at least 24 hours to avail of this benefit.