Health insurance plays a crucial role in protecting your finances as it covers expensive hospital and surgery costs, whether they are planned or emergencies. Looking at the rising medical expense, having the right health insurance plan can prevent unexpected bills from disrupting your budget or draining your savings. However, many struggle with choosing the right plan due to the number of options available. Due to which, they end up selecting a policy without fully understanding if it meets their requirement.
In this article we’ll guide you on how to choose the right plan, what features and benefits to look for:
1 – Ensure your plan covers a variety of medical conditions, including ambulance charges, pre existing illnesses, maternity benefits, cashless treatment and daily hospital charges. If you’re buying for your family, verify that the policy fits everyone’s needs. Compare plans, paying attention to the features and any hidden limits is crucial to avoid problems during the actual emergency.
2 – When selecting a family health plan, confirm that you can easily add new members. If a key family member is no longer covered, the rest of the family should still benefit from the plan without losing its advantages.
3 – Health insurance often includes a waiting period before covering pre-existing conditions or any other specific treatments. This waiting time depends on the plan. Make sure you know how long you’ll need to wait before these are covered and pick a plan with a shorter waiting period if possible.
4 – Ensure the plan offers lifetime renewability. This means you can renew the policy without purchasing a new one at a higher cost as you grow older. Without lifetime renewability, you might need to switch plans later.
5 – Your insurance plan may specify the type of room you can use during hospitalization, such as private, semi private or shared. Choose a plan with a higher room rent limit to avoid paying extra from your own pocket if you prefer more privacy.
6 – When choosing a health insurance policy, think about the tax advantages it offers. You can claim tax deductions on the premiums you pay, which can range from Rs 25,000 to Rs 75,000 based on your policy type. For a family floater plan, if your parents are over 60 years old, you can claim up to Rs 50,000 annually. For parents over 75 years old, the benefit can go up to Rs 75,000. If the policy is for someone under 60, the tax benefit is up to Rs 25,000.
