Ironman doesn’t have a health insurance policy. He doesn’t need it.

Superman doesn’t have a health insurance policy. He doesn’t need it.

Batman doesn’t have a health insurance policy. He doesn’t need it.

Hulk doesn’t have a health insurance policy. He DEFINITELY doesn’t need it.

But wait, aren’t they superheroes with 0 chances of falling sick and getting hospitalised? I mean, can you imagine Hulk in a hospital bed?

As amusing as this is, you are neither of them (unless you are keeping it a secret). So, it’s only expected that you might fall ill and, unfortunately, need to be hospitalised. That would be an eclipse on your savings, not to mention how it would eventually lead to you compromising your healthcare treatment services. Under such circumstances, health insurance plans are your safe zone.

However, we understand that availing a health insurance plan is a considerable financial decision. And answers like “I am still too young to purchase a plan” or “I have never been hospitalised ever” are common. So, here’s a look at why these answers just won’t do it, not in recent situations.

10 Reasons why you should buy Health Insurance Policies

Considering the recent pandemic outbreak, it is logical that there has been a significant rise in health insurance penetration across India. In post-pandemic India, the demand for health insurance has increased by 321%. It seems COVID-19 was an eye-opener for the nation.

But the pandemic was just a catalyst in the purchase intent of health insurance policies. The true reasons behind this piqued interest are manifold -

1. Get it Young, Get it Cheap

Millennials hold the lion’s share among those purchasing health insurance plans. They understand and acknowledge the fact that health insurances are not an investment but, rather, they are the backstop for medical emergencies. And yet the young population is showing an increased interest in purchasing health insurance plans.

This is because youngsters are getting acquainted with the idea that health insurance plans are cheaper when they are young, healthy, and disease-free. Thus, they are looking at a pocket-friendly financial move that will shield their savings during times of medical emergencies.

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2.  Your lifestyle might beckon health scares

Though people these days are frequenting gyms, going on a kale diet, and overall trying to follow a green lifestyle, there is no denying that work-life imbalances and fast food habits continue to cause health scares. Under such circumstances, frequent visits to specialists, substantial pharmacy bills, and hospitalisation are imminent. In such cases, availing of the best health insurance policies offers you the financial peace you will require in times of medical happenstances.

3.  Buy Insurance young and swim across the Waiting Period

You must have heard people say: “I am too young to buy health insurance now.”

However, this is a wrong concept. When you are young, are disease-free, it may seem like you don’t need health insurance protection. However, you don’t realise that your health insurance coverage doesn’t kick in as soon as you purchase it (except for cover for an accident). You have to wait 2-3 years (may vary from one health insurance provider to another), before the funding can be accessed to address medical treatments.

So, the earlier you purchase the plan from a reputed health insurance provider, the faster you can enjoy its perks.

4.  There is no denying this - you are getting OLD!

Well, unfortunate, but true! We say, age gracefully & wisely with a financial security net for your future health conditions. Health scares become more prominent over ailments requiring continuous treatment, hospitalisation, and minor and major surgeries as we age. Any and all of these medical situations will strain your future savings that could have been used for other causes.

On the other hand, availing of a health insurance policy during your younger years would prove to be affordable and efficient during the older years, when severe health complications might knock at the door. During such trying times, the lucrative perks of domiciliary and daycare treatment coverage might be fruitful.

5.  Medical Inflation is through the roof!

Have you ever heard that the prices of commodities are lower than last year? Well, that’s the true face of inflation for you. And the medical industry is no exception.

While healthcare services are getting more cutting-edge and more efficient, there is a significant rise in their charges. On the flip side, your finances might not exactly be making proportionate leaps to meet such expenses.

With a proper healthcare plan and a pocket-friendly health insurance add-on that shields your premium against inflation, your savings for future medical expenses are cocooned. This would also ensure you do not compromise healthcare quality because of the peaked prices incurred during hospitalisation.

6.  Taxes can finally be less scary

Health insurance premiums fall under the tax-deductible bracket. So, on the one hand, you are purchasing a policy to safeguard your future savings in the case of medical emergencies; on the other hand, the payment is shielded against taxes.

However, this tax provision under Section 80D (old regime) has a cap on the maximum tax deduction based on the policyholder's age. Here take a look -

7.  Health Insurance plans = financial trampoline

Multiple investment and savings options have emerged over the years. However, ailments are always an unfortunate surprise that drains away one’s limited savings, especially if it’s a critical or chronic disease.

In such cases having a suitable health insurance policy is like having a financial fallback plan that ensures unhindered quality healthcare while still keeping the expenses from your savings to a bare minimum.

8.  Corporate cover is COOL, but not enough!

Now let’s throw some light on why, despite having a corporate health insurance policy, you should still purchase an Individual Health insurance plan for yourself or a family floater health insurance policy for your entire family.

CORPORATE HEALTH INSURANCE INDIVIDUAL/FAMILY HEALTH INSURANCE
Sum Insured is decided by your employer.
If you include your entire family in the cover, the sum insured might feel thinly spread and inadequate.
The policy tenure is the same as your employment tenure (transfer to an individual plan is extremely complicated)
Copayments might be mandatory in some medical procedures.
Room rent restrictions might be applicable.
You are free to customise each and every aspect of your plan, including the sum insured.
The coverage bandwidth offered by reputed insurers is more than adequate.
The policy tenure is subject to your timely payment for health insurance renewal.
With the best health insurance plans, copayments are not mandatory.
Room rent restrictions are not applicable to the most popular plans across the industry.

So, while you can always enjoy the added perk of a health insurance plan from your employer, you can’t rely solely on this. If you leave the company, and this was the only health insurance plan covering your entire family, all the members become financially vulnerable during medical emergencies. Know more about why you should be opting for an individual plan despite having a corporate plan in our blog.

9.  For Hospitalisation & Beyond Hospitalisation

The expenses incurred when one falls sick do not begin and end with the hospitalisation. It starts with physician’s visits, diagnostic tests, and medication; and concludes with pharmacy bills, follow-up doctor visits, physiotherapy, and more. So, while you might feel like you can shell out the hospital bill out of your pocket, take a step back and look at the entire period. That kind of expense will surely dig a hole in your pocket.

However, health insurance providers provide optimum funding for pre-and post hospitalisation expenditures in their policies. Under this feature, coverage is offered for -

  1. Diagnostic tests,
  2. MRI,
  3. CT scans,
  4. Physician’s fees
  5. Physiotherapy,
  6. Follow-up treatments
  7. Medicines, and more.

The pre and post-hospitalisation coverage can start 60 days before the patient is admitted and extend to 180 days. This span varies from one health insurance plan to another.

10.  Convenient & Affordable Ways to Increase Your Sum Insured

  1. Accumulate your No-Claim Bonuses

Considering that you buy your health insurance plan early, you will be making no to minimum claims. So, there are two cases -

  • No Claims: With a proper health insurance provider, upon no claims, your sum insured will boost by a certain percentage each year due to a lucrative perk called a no-claim bonus. This means you will have a high sum insured bandwidth sans any increase in the premium to be paid.
  • Minimum Claims: With certain reputed health insurance stables like HDFC ERGO, Niva Bupa, and Care, there is a health insurance add-on called Protector Rider. Under this, one benefit extends to shield your No-Claim Bonus in case of small claims. Like in the case of Care, your Bonus is unaffected if the amount claimed across the year is less than 25% of your sum insured; and in the case of HDFC and Niva Bupa, this threshold amount is capped at INR 25,000. And now, despite having raised claims, you can continue accumulating your bonus and thus boost your coverage.

2.  Super Top Ups for Pocket-Friendly boosts to your sum insured

Say you buy a health insurance policy but feel like your sum insured is falling short (maybe because there are multiple policyholders or your medical condition is incurring more expenses than what you expected). Now, you know that requesting your insurer to boost your sum insured might become a pricey affair.

So, what do you do? Opt for a Super Top-Up Plan. Let's show you the difference in pricing for a better understanding -

Policyholder: 35 years old, Total Sum Insured = 25 lakhs
With Super Top Up (Deductible = INR 4 lakhs) Without Super Top Up
Base = INR 10 lakhs Premium = INR 12,877 Sum Insured = INR 25 lakhs
Premium = INR 17,604
Super Top Up = INR 15 lakhs Premium = INR 1,234
TOTAL PREMIUM = INR 14111 TOTAL PREMIUM = INR 17604

[The Super Top Up taken here is NivaBupa Recharge & the base plan is HDFC ERGO Optima Restore]