As we celebrate the building of #ViksitBharat we all seek freedom—freedom from worries, uncertainties, and financial stress. While financial freedom is often linked to building wealth, securing one’s health through comprehensive health insurance is equally crucial. Health insurance, when chosen wisely, offers protection against rising healthcare costs, which could otherwise erode our savings.
A Real-life Example:
Bhavna’s Story
Consider the case of my friend Bhavna, who faced an eye-opening situation. Her mother was hospitalized, and Bhavna, like many, thought she was well-prepared with a family health insurance plan for which they paid a Rs 65,000 annual premium. However, during her mother’s treatment, Bhavna encountered an unexpected challenge—no coverage for consumables or modern treatments like high-end ventilators, robotic surgery, or advanced diagnostics that were crucial during her mother’s illness.
Her health insurance policy, though seemingly comprehensive, was outdated. It only covered basic hospitalization and treatments, leaving out many crucial components of modern healthcare. As a result, Bhavna had to dip into her savings to cover expenses that traditional health insurance policies often exclude.
Key Lessons from Bhavna’s Experience Coverage for Consumables and Modern Treatments
In Bhavna’s case, her traditional health insurance plan did not account for consumables. According to IRDAI’s 2022 report, around 30% of health claims are rejected due to exclusions of consumables or modern treatments. During emergencies like we experienced the pandemic few years ago, costs can quickly accumulate for necessary but unlisted items, such as personal protective equipment (PPE), gloves, and advanced medical devices. Modern health insurance plans, however, now offer comprehensive coverage. New policies include benefits such as coverage for consumables, modern treatments, and technologies like robotic surgeries, stem cell therapy, and treatments that were once excluded from most policies. Today’s plans cater to these advancements, making health insurance a much-needed safety net against evolving healthcare needs.
Stay Updated on Policy Features
In addition to consumables, Bhavna’s policy did not cover certain modern diagnostic treatments or advanced medical procedures. As healthcare advances, it is critical to ensure that your health insurance policy evolves too. Many new-age policies now cover treatments like organ transplants, cancer care, mental health treatments, and home care post-surgery, offering a holistic approach to healthcare that earlier plans didn’t cover.
Importance of Sum Insured & Top-ups
The skyrocketing costs of medical treatments mean that a sum insured of Rs 5-10 lakhs, which might have seemed adequate a few years ago, is now often insufficient, especially in urban India. Bhavna’s situation demonstrated the importance of having adequate coverage. Medical inflation in India is soaring each year, and hospitalization costs for critical illnesses can range from Rs 5 lakhs to Rs 25 lakhs in major cities.
To counter this, newer health insurance plans offer super top-up policies, where individuals can enhance their coverage beyond the basic sum insured at an affordable premium. Bhavna’s family could have avoided liquidating their investments had they secured themselves better. Not just Top-ups, these days the regular health insurance plans reload even 100-150% Sum Insured to the policies as the years go by.
Avoiding Common Pitfalls
Bhavna’s experience also points out some common missteps people make while choosing health insurance:
- Ignoring Policy Riders
- Underestimating Coverage
- Not Updating Policies
To achieve true financial peace, especially concerning healthcare, it is essential to be proactive and informed about your health insurance. Here are three vital steps to ensure your health insurance truly supports your financial prosperity:
Stay Informed About Coverage: Read the policy within 15 days of buying/renewing it.
Review and Update Policies Regularly: Get your policy audited from an expert well in advance before renewal.
Collaborate with Your Insurance Provider: Regular communication with your health insurance provider is critical to staying updated on policy changes, new benefits, or better options. Make sure your entire family is involved in discussions about health insurance so that everyone is informed about the coverage available.
Bhavna’s story is not unique, but it highlights an important lesson. In a country like India, where out-of-pocket healthcare expenses contribute to more than 60% of total health expenditures, having a comprehensive, up-to-date health insurance policy is a necessity.
Today, modern health insurance policies offer far more than just hospitalization coverage—they are increasingly tailored to cover modern treatments, consumables, and even wellness programmes that help you lead a healthier life. Let’s together protect our savings and enjoy a life free from financial mess, stress and distress.
(The writer is a Financial Educator with 15-plus years of experience, a published author, a TEDx Speaker who hosts multilingual podcast shows ‘LaxmiGyaan Library’ & ‘A Sip of Finance’)
