Are you over 65 years of age? Do you have health insurance?
If you don’t, it is imperative that you get one. With rising medical costs in terms of consultations, hospitalization, medicines and treatment, having a health insurance is necessary. There are many companies that offer health insurance and you must do some research to see what works best for you.
Health insurance companies on the whole have made medical insurance more feasible for seniors by offering them many benefits. It varies from one insurance company to another, so it is important to look at the fine print and figure out what works best for you.
Let’s take a look at what is offered in a typical senior health insurance plan.
- Higher sum insured benefit
- Tax benefits on premiums
- Free-look period on the policy
- Day care costs for procedures like dialysis and chemotherapy
- Annual health check-ups
- Cashless hospitalization
- Renewing option
- Ambulance expenses
- Pre and Post hospitalization
- Coverage of pre-existing diseases
- Hospitalization expenses including room rent, hospitalization, medical treatment, etc.
As important as checking on what is covered in senior insurance policies, is figuring out what is not covered. Some of what is not covered could include:-
- Diseases contracted within 30 days of availing the policy
- Non-allopathic treatment
- Self injury/self harm
- Pre-existing injuries
- Pre existing diseases
- Rehabilitation or treatment related to substance abuse
- Ophthalmologic treatment
- Cosmetic treatment
- Dental treatment
- Injury from war, act of foreign army
- AIDS treatment
Before getting a health insurance, what you should do:-
- A complete medical check up
You should check whether the insurance company will pay for the check up. They usually do. This is required by all insurance companies, but it would also helpful in diagnosing any illnesses that you may have and not even be aware of. - Reveal medical history
It is best to give the insurance company all details of previous medical history. If you are not completely honest, you may have problems when you make a claim. - Compare insurance policies thoroughly
This may be drudge work, but in the long run you need a company that you know will still be around and will pay up. So check up on the reliability of the company and the kind of reviews that they’ve had. Comparison can also be done between the various health insurance plans for senior citizens on factors such as coverage, price, riders/add-ons, inclusions, and exclusions. - Check on co payment
Many companies use a method called co payment where the insured has to take care of part payment for some of the medical expenses. Make sure that you understand the terms of co payment if it is included, so you will not be caught by surprise when making a claim.
Some of the good insurance companies that offer Senior Citizen Health Insurance plans:-
- Apollo Munich’s Optima Senior Health Plan
- ICICI Lombard’s iHealth Plan
- Star Health’s Red Carpet
- New India’s Senior Citizen Mediclaim Policy
- National Insurance Varishtha Mediclaim