With soaring costs of medical treatment, having some form of financial buffer is necessary. While it may not be always possible to save up big sums for these unexpected contingencies, a health insurance plan can definitely help you take care of your finances at these times.
But buying any health insurance cover isn’t just right. Among the various available health insurance in India, selecting a policy that suits your requirements is essential. This article compiles such factors to check when buying a health insurance policy
Understanding your requirement
The first and foremost thing is to factor in is your requirement. Understanding your medical coverage needs helps to carefully select a policy that checks the right boxes and get an adequate coverage. The coverage of every individual differs and thus there is no one policy that fits all. For instance, an elderly individual may seek coverage for their pre-existing diseases whereas a first-time policy buyer may want more features at affordable price. So, once you finalise your requirement, you can make a choice of the insurance cover to select.
Finalising the coverage amount
A general rule of thumb estimates an insurance cover six time their monthly income to be sufficient for an individual. But it is a generalisation and not the only way to go ahead. Buying a health insurance cover based on your reliance for medical needs is crucial. For instance, one may prefer the facility of a cashless health insurance during retirement, so buying a policy with one is necessary. Not only the features, but the amount of coverage is essential to look for when investing in a health insurance policy. Also, when buying an insurance plan, take a note of the number of beneficiaries for who the policy serves. An individual policy with ₹5 lakh of sum insured may not be sufficient for a family floater plan.
The benefits offered under the insurance cover
Familiarising yourself with the policy features as well as is essential at the time of purchase. For that, you can go through your insurance policy’s terms and conditions as well as the information booklet and brochures. All these documents when combined can help you get a bird’s eye view of the features of your insurance cover and even minute details regarding the specifics.
Increasing the coverage
With increasing costs of medical treatment, it is necessary to have health insurance coverage to cover the treatment costs. What you might buy today may not be sufficient five years later. For that reason, having flexibility in your insurance policy is essential. Your policy terms should allow modification so as to increase the sum assured under your policy. Moreover, this evaluation needs to be carried out at each renewal date while comparing the cost of medical inflation.
Make sure you check for these points when investing in an insurance policy. Be it a standard individual plan or a critical illness insurance, the basic points remain the same. The specifics of every insurance policy differ and need to be selected based on your coverage requirements. Insurance is the subject matter of solicitation. For more details on benefits, exclusions, limitations, terms and conditions, please read sales brochure/policy wording carefully before concluding a sale.
