Health Insurance Plans and Policies by HDFC Life

• Medical inflation

Nobody is immune to the impact of inflation on their finances. Yet many are unaware that medical costs have risen faster than general price rise. The future is expected to be no different and that is one more reason people need to have medical insurance through health insurance plans and mediclaim policies. While a mediclaim policy reimburses the policyholder for the hospitalisation, health insurance policies go a step further and cover other expenses.

• Costly treatment of lifestyle diseases

Thanks to advances in healthcare and greater access of healthcare facilities like hospitals and clinics, people are living longer and leading better quality of life. At the same time, changing lifestyle has led to increase in lifestyle diseases like diabetes and those related to the heart. Of course, there is cancer whose onset has also increased. Most of us are aware that the treatment for such diseases, especially hospitalisation can be very expensive. This provides us with yet one more reason to have health insurance or medical insurance by buying an online health insurance plan. Clearly, meeting such expenses from regular income is not even an option. Also, you can never be sure how much such an emergency would cost you. This makes it much more sensible to have medical insurance through at least a mediclaim policy and ideally, a health insurance plan.

• Premature exit from long term investments

If you are unprotected from the impact of emergencies, your family’s present and future are bound to be impacted. Remember, not only will you have to pay for your immediate treatment but also have to spend money for follow-up treatment. That’s not to ignore the possibility of a disruption in your earning your regular. Often, all this involves you or your family making premature exits from investments. This may not only derail arrangements in meeting regular family expenses but also your progress for the future such as child’s higher education. To sum up, medical emergencies can be much more expensive than they might appear. The good news is that we have health insurance plans that can help us get our lives back on track after any medical emergency.

• Lump payment for critical illness

When you suffer from a critical illness like cancer or major heart disease, the financial impact starts from the time of diagnosis. A health insurance plan covering large number of important critical illness can provide the wide ranging protection that you and your family needs. You need to ensure that the health insurance plan covers the major critical illnesses like cancer, paralysis, coronary artery bypass surgery, major organ transplant, stroke and kidney failure. Of course, along with regular health insurance plans, one can supplement the medical insurance coverage with health insurance plans covering specific critical illness like cancer. Typically, such critical illness insurance plans not only provide the lump sum payout on detection of the disease but also provide additional benefits such as provision of regular income a for a period of time, and waiving off the requirement to pay premium for the health insurance plan.

• Daily cash payments during hospitalisation

Unlike traditional mediclaim policies, a good health insurance plan should meet another important requirement of daily cash expenses that arise during stays at the hospital. Typically, a percentage of the total insurance amount is paid as daily cash benefits.

• Tax benefits

When you are smart enough to adequately protect your family finances from medical emergencies, you also get rewarded in other ways. Like traditional mediclaim policies, premiums paid under health insurance plans are eligible for deduction upto Rs 25,000 under Section 80D of the Income-tax Act, 1961. You get further deductions of Rs. 25,000 if you pay health insurance premiums for parents, who are not senior citizens. Just in case your parents are senior citizens, the eligibility of additional deductions goes up even further to Rs 30,000 from Rs. 25,000 stated above. A good health insurance plan in India or medical insurance coverage has to be more than what a mediclaim policy provided in the past. It is all about securing you from all possible expenses during health related emergencies. It is important that your health insurance plan not only covers all your expenses incurred in the hospital like but also other expenses related to critical illnesses that are increasingly arising due to changes in lifestyles.

• Check company’s geographical presence

Insurance companies providing mediclaim policies or health insurance plans typically have tie ups with hospitals having large networks. You need to check whether hospitals or healthcare facilities empanelled with a prospective insurance company, are situated close to your residence. Also, check if the insurance company has a presence across the country so that in the case of the need for physical interaction, you are not inconvenienced.

• Study the width of coverage

Mediclaim policies and health insurance plans provide financial protection to you in case of medical emergencies but the coverage of the emergencies are specified in the policies. It is important to be aware of these conditions, the ailments and diseases that are covered. Consider opting for a health insurance plan that has a wide coverage and few exclusions.

• Find out the coverage of pre-existing diseases

If you suffer from a particular ailment, you will need to disclose this at the time of buying a health insurance plan. At the same time, it is important to know from when the disease will get covered. Typically, insurance companies start covering pre-existing ailments after 3-4 years of continuous coverage.

• Save on premiums by buying online

Almost all companies offering health insurance companies offer online policies. The premiums for such mediclaim policies and health insurance plans are lower since the companies pass on savings from distribution and other cost savings. However, remember that advice and support you get from an advisor will be absent and you will need to deal with the company directly. This makes it important for you to choose an insurance company well known for its customer service both online and in its branch offices across the country.

To sum up, online health insurance provides you with financial protection your family needs in case of medical emergencies. Yet, one needs to keep these five things in mind to make the most of this protection tool.

• What is typically the age at which a health insurance plan can be bought?

While the conditions may be vary but the age of entry is typically between 18-65 years

• When does one get the critical illness benefit from health insurance plans?

In case of life insurance companies, this benefit is typically paid in full, on the diagnosis of the critical illnesses. Of course, the critical illness needs to be present in the list of critical illnesses covered by health insurance plans

• Is there any tax benefits available for health insurance premiums?

Health insurance plans provide annual tax deductions of upto Rs 25,000 under Section 80D of the Income-tax Act, 1961. You get further tax deductions of Rs 25,000 if you pay health insurance premiums for parents, who are not senior citizens. Just in case your parents are senior citizens, the eligibility of additional tax deductions goes up even further, to Rs 30,000.

• What happens if there is an existing health plan and there are additions to the family?

To adapt to situations where there additions in the family, especially after the birth of a child, or health insurance coverage needs to be enhanced for some other reason, you can buy health insurance plans that allow to-ups. Health insurance plans from some life insurance companies provide facilities for top-ups. They also have provisions for top ups to happen automatically on reaching certain life stages like marriage.

• If one doesn’t make a claim, doesn’t the policyholder’s money actually get “wasted”?

There are health insurance plans, especially those provided by life insurance companies that provide you with return of your premiums at the end of the policy term.

• Do health insurance plans provide accidental death benefits?

Certain life insurance companies provide health insurance plans that provide accidental death benefit. This is over and above their death benefits.

• What happens to the health insurance plan if a person becomes permanently disabled?

Look for a health insurance plan that waives off the premium payment requirement.