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5 Different Types of Health Insurance in India
Having a health insurance plan helps you safeguard yourself and your family from unforeseen financial strains. An insurance plan works completely on the concept of risk-sharing. It means that a policyholder shares financial risks with their insurance provider. Medical emergencies can arise anytime and anywhere so, having a comprehensive health plan is necessary.
In this blog, you will get an overview of the various types of health insurance plans in India and why to buy health insurance.
What are the Types of Medical Insurance Plans in India?
Most individuals think that purchasing a health plan is enough. However, you must choose the best-suited plan among the numerous types, each of them offering different features and benefits. Moreover, it is always preferred to compare health insurance plans before buying one.
Here we have listed the type of medical insurance available for you to choose as per your needs.
1.Individual Health Insurance Plan
It is a health plan that covers a single person against numerous medical expenses. One can buy this type of plan for their family members like spouse, child, parents or themself. Note that the insurance company will offer coverage for the insured person only. The premium rate you need to pay depends on your age, gender, previous medical history, and many other factors. Most individual health insurance policies include hospitalisation covers, room rent expenses, doctor's fees, etc.
Prime Features
- Covers insured person only
- The sum insured is not shared and is fully available for the policyholder
2.Family Health Insurance Plan
Buying separate insurance policies for every member can be a bit costly, thus buying a family insurance plan is a cost-effective solution for the entire family. In addition, if you have an older parent at home, you can easily extend the coverage and ensure comprehensive financial coverage for the family. Most insurers offer this type of plan on a floater basis.
Prime Features
- Covers entire family
- The sum insured is shared among the beneficiaries
3.Group Health Insurance Plan
It is also known as an employee health insurance plan, which provides healthcare coverage to a group of members and their family members. This type of plan is much more affordable than individual and family health insurance plans. Most companies pay the entire premium for their employees. You must note that every insurer offers this type of plan for a specific number of employees.
Prime Features
- Covers the employee and their dependents (in some cases)
- Offers top-up of the sum insured amount
4.Senior Citizen Health Insurance Plan
This type of health insurance plan covers medical expenses for individuals over 65 years. Other than basic medical expenses, it provides specific inclusions like pre-existing diseases, critical illness coverage, preventive health check-up covers, and many others. Such plans, most of the time, do not have any maximum age limit.
Prime Features
- Covers senior citizens above 60-65 years
- Premiums are higher than other types of health insurance plan
5.Top-up Health Insurance Plan
It acts as a supplementary health insurance plan to get additional coverage for you and your family members. By purchasing this type of plan, you will get an extra cover as it offers higher coverage. Top-up health plans are ideal for individuals who require medical treatments beyond the sum insured amount offered in their primary health plan.
Prime Features
- Organ Donor Expenses
- Emergency Ambulance Covers
- Pre-existing illness Covers
How to Compare Health Insurance Plans?
Every type of health insurance plan comes with different inclusions, exclusions, premiums, etc. That is why it is crucial to compare health plans before buying one. Below are some factors to look into before buying the best health insurance plan.
- Coverage options: Go through all the inclusions to ensure a comprehensive health plan.
- Sum Insured: Every insurer provides a different sum insured (maximum claimable amount) so compare it before buying one.
- Premium: Compare the premium amount of varied insurance companies and choose the best-suited one.
- Network Hospitals: Choose a provider who offers an extensive range of network hospitals.
- Pre-existing Illness Coverage: If you or any of your family members has a pre-existing disease, look for this in the health plans while comparing
- Customisation Options: Every individual has varied insurance needs, thus look for an insurer who offers customisation options with their health policies.
The Bottom Line
Other than all the above-listed types of health plans, there are other more specific types of plans like critical illness health plans, maternity health plans, personal accident health plans, etc. There are other important factors to consider before you buy a health insurance policy, like the waiting period, claim settlement ratio, claim process, exclusions, etc. Make sure you compare health insurance plans adequately to get the best possible outcome from it.
Moreover, if you have further doubts or questions regarding health insurance policies, feel free to contact ACKO.
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