Planning to Buy a Health Insurance Policy?

This has recently become the question of the hour. The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a severe toll on the working conditions and livelihood of the people. It is essential to protect yourself and your entire family from illness and emergency hospitalization in such difficult times.

Emergency hospitalization is expensive; there is also stress on the availability of hospital beds and access to quality medical treatment. The only way to shield yourself from such a catastrophe is to buy a comprehensive healthcare policy.

Ask yourself a simple question - What would you do if any of your family members required emergency hospitalization due to an accident or life-threatening disease?

In short, a health insurance plan provides coverage in the form of financial aid for you and your family (each member). You can utilise the cover amount for paying the medical expenses incurred due to emergency hospitalization. You can also avail of a cashless facility, where the insurer will directly settle the hospital bill with assistance from the third party administrator.

This is where Coverfox will come to your rescue. Read more and find out.

Now that you have finally decided to buy health insurance, there are certain factors that you must consider and compare.

Why compare? A comparison will help you determine the right type of health plan and the cost associated with the same. Plus, you can compare top insurers' multiple policies at a click of a button, only on Coverfox.

• The first thing is to do a self-assessment of your medical needs along with financial capacity. Ask yourself the following questions.
• Do you need a health plan for yourself plus family? Are you planning to get married and have kids? What about maternity and newborn baby cover? What about your elder parents? Are they senior citizens? This will help you determine the amount of coverage required.

• Medical treatment is expensive, so is the cost of hospitalization. The last thing you want is your entire savings on the verge of depletion due to a medical emergency. This is where a cashless facility will come to your rescue. Under a cashless facility, you need not pay a single penny from your wallet. The hospital will take care of the bill, directly with your insurer. Always go for a healthcare policy that comes with a wide number of cashless hospitals not just in your city but across India.

• In-patient hospitalization must be covered at all costs. It involves staying in the hospital for more than 24 hours in case of a medical emergency. Go for a plan that comes with a maximum cover for in-patient hospitalization, as this is the most expensive form of medical/surgical treatment.

• Due to the high number of inbound patients, hospitals have increased the cost of medical treatment by ten folds, even for minor surgeries. Such surgeries and daycare procedures require less than 24 hours in the hospital. Look for a plan that covers the same.

• Look for medical policies that have no capping on room rent limit. Under every health policy, a certain percentage of the overall sum insured is utilised for room rent. It is usually between 1-3% of the sum insured. You will save a lot of money if your room rent limit covers medical treatment costs in a hospital.

• You often need to visit the hospital (follow-ups, medical reports, blood tests, and revised medication) regularly post-discharge. The same might happen in the case of planned hospitalization. Go for a plan that covers pre and post hospitalization expenses for a specific number of days.

• Many insurers sell policies with mandatory co-payment. Under this facility, you are required to pay a portion of the hospital bill. This percentage is pre-decided during the time of policy inception. Go for a plan that comes with minimum co-payment or nil co-payment.

• Evert health policy in this country comes with a set of inclusions and exclusions. Inclusions are covered, while your health insurance plan does not cover exclusions. You can find the entire list of inclusions and exclusions in the policy document.

• Apart from inclusions and exclusions, there is the concept of a waiting period. It applies to most health insurance companies. A waiting period is a time under which pre-existing diseases and illness will not be covered under your health plan. The time period ranges from 24-48 months. Post the waiting period; your policy will treat your pre-existing diseases and illnesses accordingly.

• A no claim bonus will entitle you to a discount on renewal premium if you have not made any claims in the previous financial year. You can avail of a discount of up to 50% on the renewal premium amount if you have not made any successive claims for the past consecutive years in a row.

• If you make regular trips to the hospital, go for a healthcare policy that comes with the sum restore benefit. Under this facility, you can avail of additional health cover even if you have completely exhausted your entire sum insured within a single financial year.

There are multiple instances of bad customer experience that might leave you frustrated and angry. This is where the health insurance portability option will come in handy. You can easily switch to a new insurance provider under this facility without losing any existing benefits such as NCB. Note: You can only switch to a new insurer at the time of renewal.