As per survey, 56 percent of the Indians do not have any medical insurance. This is not a good situation as more than half of the population in India is still living without any medical coverage.
Many people who have medical insurance are not aware of the insurance plans as they invest in the policy only for tax benefits. Though tax savings is one aspect of purchasing medical or health insurance, the most important part of the insurance is that you and your family are secured when there is a need for money during a medical emergency.
Are you amongst the 56 percent who are covered through medical insurance? The fact is that you would only realize the importance of medical or health insurance when there is a real necessity.
Medical inflation is rising at an alarming rate, with hospitalization and other healthcare-related costs rising with each passing day. Even if you and your family members are perfectly fine, staying without proper medical insurance does not sound logical.
If you are keen to know about the advantages of availing medical insurance plan, read on as we would cover a lot of important points in this article:
Cashless Hospitalization
Costs incurred in hospitals, nursing homes, and other medical facilities can sometimes be huge. You would never want that the medical treatment is delayed due to cost constraints. By opting for some of the best mediclaim policies, you do not need to pay for hospitalization when seeking treatment.
Instead, the insurance provider will settle the bills that are incurred during the stay in the hospital. This reimbursement can be vital in scenarios where significant medical expenses are incurred.
Tax Benefits
Though this should not be your primary motive to opt for medical insurance, it is one of the important by-products of choosing medical insurance. If you are paying a premium for your health cover, you are eligible for income tax rebates under section 80D of the Income Tax Act.
If you are a working professional and aged below 60 years, you are eligible for a tax benefit of Rs. 25,000 per annum due to payment of insurance premiums.
On the other hand, if you are a senior citizen or aged above 60 years, you are eligible for a maximum tax benefit of Rs. 50,000 per annum due to regular payment of insurance premiums.
Reimbursement in non-network hospitals
Every insurance company will have a network of hospitals with which they have a tie-up. The plus point of taking medical treatment in a network hospital is that you can avail cashless treatment by showing the required documents along with the insurance card.
If you or your loved ones are admitted to a non-network hospital, you can still avail insurance benefits but that would not be a cashless one. Depending on the health coverage, you can avail benefits after submitting the claim documents within specified days from the date of discharge.
Though in the first case you get cashless treatment, in the other case also you get adequate benefits due to health insurance.
Critical Illness Care
Many illnesses are more severe than others. Timely treatment for such critical illnesses can drastically increase the patient’s chances of survival and leading a healthy life in the future.
Most of the insurance policies have add-ons that can be opted for on top of the base insurance policy. Treatment for critical illnesses can be expensive and choosing the right insurance provider and add-on policy can be helpful in scenarios when we need assistance/support.
While selecting the insurance policy, always check the add-ons so that you can select the right insurance plan along with the add-on cover.
Free Check-Ups
Some insurance companies also cover medical check-up charges. Yearly or bi-yearly health-checkups and even dental checkups are covered as a part of some policies. These regular health check-ups are vital since it helps you identify any medical problems at an early stage.
Take the example of cancer; it can remain undetected for many years before the symptoms appear. Such health check-ups can be very useful as they would unravel the problems at an early stage.
Support for alternate medicines
With AYUSH (Ayurvedic, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy), alternate forms of medicine are also gaining importance. Many people, youngsters as well as senior citizens, look out for alternative medicines to cure certain conditions that are difficult to get treated via traditional forms of medicine.
Homeopathy and Ayurveda are the two most important forms of alternative medicine that are in wide use. Most of the well-known health insurance providers have coverage under AYUSH. This is an important step as more and more Indians are looking at alternate medicines for treatment, especially mental-health related issues.
If you are planning to buy health insurance for your parents or senior-citizens, having an AYUSH add-on would be a wise move as treatment under AYUSH is becoming more important in India.
Domiciliary Treatment Cover
There are some cases where the doctor would recommend home treatment for the patients. This is especially true if the treatment is for a long-term and it does not look viable to stay in the hospital for that much time.
As the patient shifts to his/her home, he/she is still under medical supervision. This would incur significant costs. Health insurance policies that cover domiciliary treatment reimburse the expenses incurred in the home treatment.
Conclusion
If you are opting for medical insurance for any of your dependents who are undertaking medical assistance at home, this cover would be very beneficial as it would reduce the financial burden.
We covered the major benefits of opting for health or medical insurance. Before opting for appropriate health insurance, it is important that you have a detailed look at different insurance providers and the insurance policies that they offer.
Irrespective of your age and health conditions, it is necessary to have insurance cover as it provides you assistance in situations when you need the most!
