Top 5 Things You Should Know Before Buying Health Insurance

Understand the Coverage You’re Getting

The very first thing you need to do is to dig into everything your policy actually covers. A good health insurance plan should ideally include provisions like medical treatments, surgical procedures, diagnostic tests, medications, and other medical services. 

When it comes to the health insurance offered in India, they usually provide benefits like pre- and post-hospitalisation coverage, day-care procedures, restoration benefits, and co-payment clauses.

Buying Health Insurance Tip: Make sure that you have a checklist in place of the treatments you may need, like maternity, chronic condition management, or daycare surgeries. Once this checklist is prepared, cross-check it with your health insurance plan to make sure your plan covers the items on the checklist.

Check the Important Aspect of the Insurance Cover

There are certain aspects in a health insurance plan that you ought to double and triple-check. This includes:  

• Sum Insured: The sum insured is the maximum amount the insurer will pay during the policy period. Make sure to choose a value high enough to cover possible medical costs, especially if you reside in a city that has higher healthcare rates.
• Waiting Periods: Many health insurance policies might impose waiting periods that can often last between 24 and 36 months. This especially holds true for pre-existing conditions like diabetes or hypertension. Other policies could also have waiting periods for specific treatments, such as maternity.
• Co-payment/Sub-limits: These clauses essentially expect you to pay a portion of the bill out-of-pocket. Though this might lower your premium, it ultimately increases your expenses during a claim.

Buying Health Insurance Tip: It is very important to factor in all these costs instead of just focusing on low premiums. Also, try to focus on plans that come with restoration benefits, which replenish your sum insured if it’s exhausted during the year.

Doctors and Hospitals Coverage

A health insurance policy might seem like the perfect one for you on paper, but it will end up being useless if your preferred hospitals or doctors are not included in it. This is why it is important to always verify the list of network hospitals and providers before you buy the insurance plan. 

Review all the Details of the Plan

There are certain crucial details in health insurance plans that you need to review without fail. These include:

• Policy Terms & Hidden Clauses: Remember to thoroughly read all the policy documents to understand all the terms, limits and hidden clauses mentioned exactly. These terms should be in regard to pre- or post-hospitalisation durations, room rent limits, and renewal age caps.
• Renewability: A good health insurance plan should ideally offer lifetime renewability. This helps you stay covered even as you age.
• Claim Settlement & Insurer Reputation: When buying a health insurance policy, it is also important to look at the claim settlement ratio and reviews of the insurers. 

Tax Benefits and Additional Features

It is important to understand the tax benefits and the other features that a good healthcare insurance can offer you. 

• Tax Benefits: The premiums paid for health insurance, in India, are eligible for deduction under Section 80D of the Income Tax Act, up to ₹25,000 for those under 60 and ₹50,000 for senior citizens.
• Additional Benefits: Did you know that a lot of health insurance plans offer certain perks like free annual check-ups, health service discounts, critical illness riders, or cashless treatment options?

Remember to use these benefits to help lower your long-term cost. Something as small as a wellness check-up or hospital cash cover, as an add-on to the policy, will help make a meaningful difference.