Covid hit us hard, and while the dangers of the new variants continue to bother us, the only way to fight these medical emergencies seems to be prepared. While the pandemic toppled just about everyone’s lives, those with limited financial means and the ones without any health coverage were the ones who were the worst hit. It was made evidently visible that without any mediclaim policies, the hospital bills could quickly bite a chunk of your savings.
What are Mediclaim Policies?
Mediclaim policies in India stand for a type of health insurance plan. The policyholder pays a certain amount, called the premium, to the insurance company, which in turn covers the expenses that are to be or have been incurred on medical treatment. Mediclaim policies offer claim settlement in the form of cashless claims when the treatment is taken at a network hospital. In the case of a non-network hospital, you would have to pay the bills upfront. However, you can then file a reimbursement claim.
Types of Mediclaim policies in India
Looking at the different types of mediclaim policies will help you understand the concept better.
Family Floater Policy:
As the name suggests, such a policy covers you and your family under a single policy. There is a common sum insured which can be shared between all the members. Mostly you, your spouse, your dependent children and dependent parents can be covered in a family floater mediclaim policy.
Individual Policy:
While an individual policy can also be for the family, here, every member has a separate sum insured., and the amount can be shared/transferred.
Senior Citizen Policy:
Designed especially for people over the age of 60 years, these mediclaim policies help the elderly manage their rising healthcare expenses.
Critical Illness Policy:
A critical-illness-specific policy will offer you more coverage. These mediclaim policies are fixed benefit plans, and when the insured is diagnosed with any of the listed diseases, a lump sum amount of money is paid out to them to manage the expenses of the treatment.
Mediclaim policies in India – What is covered?
While every insurance policy is somewhat different from the other, the most common inclusions of mediclaim policies are given below. Make sure you check the details of your policy for the coverage benefits:
In-patient hospitalisation charges are covered when the hospital stay is for 24 hours or more.
Most mediclaim policies also cover daycare procedures
There can be expenses that take place before and after a hospitalisation, and your mediclaim policy may cover them for a specified number of days.
Benefits of buying Mediclaim policies in India
If you do not have a mediclaim policy that covers you and your family members, it is probably because you do not yet comprehend the importance of a health plan. Read on to understand the multifarious benefits of having a mediclaim policy.
You need to have financial coverage:
Your mediclaim plan can act as true support when you are in a medical crisis. Without having to run around raising money, you can concentrate on your/ your loved one’s treatment. You also need to remember that treatment can often stretch way beyond hospitalisation. There are many expenses that you may have to incur before and after the hospital stay. Make sure you are covered for it all.
Insurance is affordable
Due to misinformation, people may feel that a mediclaim policy is a costly proposition, but this is just a myth. A mediclaim policy will cost you way less than the actual treatment. Also, buying an insurance policy early in life will help you save all the more, as you grow older, the premiums that you need to pay will also increase. So buy a good mediclaim policy while you are young and make the purchase all the more affordable.
Medical inflation is at an all-time high:
In the financial year 2021, India showed a steep rise in medical inflation with a rate of 14%. So. While you may feel that your savings today will cover you for a treatment tomorrow, it may not really be that way. When you have the right insurance policy, you have the assurance that you will be able to afford good quality treatment even if it is beyond your means.
You get to save on taxes:
Mediclaim policy India helps you save in more ways than one. You can not only save on hospital expenses but also on taxes. The premiums that you pay towards your policy are tax-exempted under Section 80D of the Income Tax Act. You can rescue your tax liability by up to INR 25,000. If you are a senior citizen or you have mediclaim policies for your parents who are senior citizens, you can save further.
The world around you is changing:
Covid, black fungus and now monkeypox, there seems to be a constant rise in the number of diseases all around. Apart from this, there is also a constant change in people’s lifestyles. Unhealthy eating, disturbed sleep patterns, and increased levels of stress have given rise to many chronic diseases. Being under the umbrella of mediclaim policies is vital.
Mediclaim policies in India are slowly gaining the required popularity. It would not be incorrect to say that mediclaim policies are the foundation for any future plans that you have for yourself and your family. While you may not be able to always avert a trip to the hospital, make sure it does not eat up all your savings. Explore a few mediclaim policies and get the best one today.
