The Importance of Health Insurance Plan

If you meet an expert Financial planner, the first advice would be to buy a “comprehensive Health Insurance policy” for yourself and your family. Health is Wealth and investing your wealth for your health should be the first step when you start Financial Planning.

Ideally, one should buy Health insurance at an early stage covering self as well as a complete family. But many times, people ponder that What is the need for buying a health insurance? Many even rely on the insurance coverage provided by their employer, without really checking, if the sum insured is suffice for self and family.

Here are the reasons, why you need to have Health insurance:

1. Medical and Healthcare Inflation:

Did you know that India’s healthcare Inflation has been rapidly increasing and it is alarming in the sense that it is more than double the retail Inflation? Isn’t that scary? The medications, doctor consult fee, Hospital charges have all witnessed a massive spike.

Thus having adequate coverage becomes a basic necessity to keep you away from any Financial Stress during the times of Medical emergencies.

2. Lifestyle Diseases:

IDF (International Diabetes Federation)had reported that “1 in 3 young people in India suffer from lifestyle diseases”. Ever-increasing stress, more access to junk foods, lack of physical activities are all taking a toll on our health. Due to the changes in our lifestyle patterns, Cholesterol, Diabetes, Thyroid, High Blood Pressure are continuously on the rise amongst Indians. And the result is an increased expenditure towards various Medical Treatments after the age of 30.

This is where having a comprehensive Health insurance Plan helps one financially.

3. Better Coverage:

Don’t look for the policy with minimum Premium, rather tap on the Best Health Insurance Company and their coverage. Most of the coverages not just bear your hospitalization / Treatment charges, but also include doctor consultation fees, diagnostic tests fees, pre, and post-treatment coverage, emergency ambulance costs and so on. Opting for such comprehensive plans, helps you end to end at the time of Medical Emergency.

4. Accidental Protection:

With the way Traffic rules are flouted on the burdened roads, life on the road is very prone to accidents. Any sudden incident can leave your dependents drained emotionally as well as financially. Hence, having an accident coverage in your Health Insurance plan is an added bonus.

5. Income tax deduction:

Since the government also promotes Health Insurance, hence the Premium paid on health insurance is tax-deductible under Section 80D of the IT Act. You can avail the tax relief as Premium paid for the complete family, i.e. Self, spouse, children, and even parents. 

6. Cashless Treatment:

Since most of the Insurance providers have ties with a defined network of hospitals, you can simply avail cashless treatment at any of those hospitals. This relieves you of the immediate need for cash, in the course of any emergency.

How to decide a Health Insurance policy?

Check out the plans and have a very close look at the following factors, apart from the Premium :

• Inclusions and exclusions (Lesser the exclusion, better the policy)
• Less complicated and simpler plans
• Sub-Limits/Capping’s (If any), like Hospital Room Rents (opt for the ones without any capping or Sub-limits)
• Renewability Clause (Prefer plans with Lifetime Renewability, so that you don’t have difficulties with apt plan and Premium, as your age advances) 
• Hospitalization Network (choose the one with an extensive network of hospitalization)
• Waiting Period (which varies from 2-4 years, for the pre-existing diseases). Opt for the policy with the shortest waiting period.
• Additional Benefits, if any which varies for every policy and Insurance Company.

If you don’t have any Health Insurance Policy yet, then it is time to think of self and dependents. Start your research and choose the one which suits your requisites, most comprehensively.