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Health risks and uncertainties are part of life. The hectic lifestyle, rising pollution and unhealthy food habits of most people are some of the reasons why lifestyle-related diseases are on the rise in India. At the same time, the available treatments for these health issues and other life-threatening ailments such as cancer have become that much harder to afford.
In the absence of adequate financial backing, you may have to compromise on either the quality or the frequency of treatment, while spending your savings to no avail.
Therefore, you need to opt for one of the best health insurance plans with a critical illness (CI) cover to help you prepare financially against any medical emergencies [1].
What is Health Insurance?
Health insurance is essentially, a way to pay for health care. In other words, it helps protects you from paying the costs of medical services in full during a medical emergency.
When you purchase health insurance policy, your health insurer agrees to provide financial assistance to pay a portion of your covered medical costs.
A financial crisis on top of a health issue can land you in a stressful situation. Buying the best health insurance plan can lessen your worries and let you focus on your health first. You must choose your health insurance policy wisely and do in-depth research to make sure that you have the best possible healthcare coverage.
Tips to Consider While Buying a Health Insurance Policy
Once you know what is health insurance, you should check the important tips to consider before opting for one of the best health insurance plans in India. Following are some of the important tips that you should consider while buying a health insurance plan:
· Right Time to Purchase
Most of you wait for the right time to buy health insurance policy. However, it is advisable that you invest in a health insurance policy as soon as you start earning [2]. There is more than one reason to buy health insurance at an early age. If you are the only earning member in your family, then you can also purchase health insurance plans for family as well.
The earlier you purchase it for yourself, say in your 20s, the lesser premium you will have to pay, and you can avail of better coverage than what you would have if you were in your late 30s or early 40s.
It is because you are usually free of health complications when you are young. Some of the benefits of starting early are:
Ø Lower chances of application rejection
Ø Hassle-free renewal
Ø Coverage against most life-threatening diseases including cancer and cardiovascular conditions
· Type of Coverage
You must first analyze your health insurance needs before opting for a suitable health cover. For example, if you are unmarried and do not have any dependent parents or children, buying individual health insurance policy will make more sense.
Whereas, if you have a family, you can cover your entire family by buying health insurance plans for family or a family floater medical policy. Therefore, you must decide on the type of health insurance policy that will suit your needs the most before purchasing a health plan.
· Sum Assured
Given the high medical costs, the sum assured should be enough to take care of your medical needs. Consider the total number of members in your family, any existing illnesses and the expected medical costs to reach an estimate of the adequate sum insured.
Since a high sum insured involves a higher premium, you should assess the affordability as well. It is a crucial factor in getting adequate health insurance cover for you and your family.
What are the Benefits of Health Insurance Plans?
Health insurance plans offer a variety of features and benefits, depending upon the choice of insurer. For example, several health plans include cancer insurance cover to help you protect yourself and your family against the life-threatening ailment. Hence, you must study every plan’s features carefully and opt for those plans that provide additional benefits over and above your base health insurance cover.
This way, you can buy the best health insurance policy, which suits your needs as well as fits into your budget. The benefits of purchasing health insurance include:
· Lesser Waiting Period
Waiting period refers to a specific time limit that you must pass before your health insurance policy coverage begins to function. Make sure you choose a health insurance policy with a shorter waiting period. For example, there is a waiting period of 90 days if you opt for the Max Life Cancer Insurance Plan (UIN: 104N093V03) (Non-Linked Non-Participating Individual Pure Risk Premium Health InsurancePlan).
Also, if you are planning a baby, buying health insurance with a longer waiting period for maternity coverage will prevent you from availing its benefits.
· Quick Claim Process
The claim settlement process is one of the most crucial factors in selecting the best health insurance. Typically, it is the Claim Settlement Ratio (CSR) that helps determine the efficacy if an insurer’s commitment to settle insurance claims.
· Coverage Against Critical Illness
Health insurance plans from Max Life Insurance provide a dedicated critical illness cover. The additional critical illness cover helps get substantial financial assistance in case of ailments such as cancer, whose treatment costs can reach astronomical figures in no time.
Health problems such as cancer, strokes or heart attacks are usually covered under a critical illness cover.
How Does Max Life Insurance Provide Protection Against Critical Illnesses?
We, at Max Life Insurance, offer critical illness cover that protects against 40 life-threatening diseases. You can add a critical illness cover to your term insurance plan by following these quick and easy steps:
1. Choose the policy term, and sum assured
The first step is to use the online term life insurance calculator to ascertain the premium for the required sum assured along with the tenure of the plan.
2. Select Riders
The next step is to choose the add-on benefits according to your individual needs to enhance financial protection in case of a disability or critical illness. They are available on the payment of an additional premium.
3. Payment of Premium
After deciding upon the health insurance policy and the riders, you can proceed to fill your personal details and make the payment for the premium.
4. Proposal Form
The proposal form is an in-detail version of your application form, focusing on your lifestyle habits such as smoking, drinking and medical history.
5. Medical Test
Based on individual life-risk, you may have to go through a medical test. Any such check-ups will take place only after you fill the proposal form and submit the valid documents.
Term Insurance with Critical Illness Cover
The minimum entry age to purchase a critical illness cover is 18 years, while the maximum is 65 years. Max Life Insurance offers a built-in Accelerated Critical Illness (ACI) Benefit under its term plan variants – Max Life Online Term Plan Plus (UIN: 104N092V04) (Non-Linked Non-Participating Individual Pure Risk Premium Life Insurance Plan) and Max Life Smart Term Plan (UIN: 104N113V04) (Non Linked Non Participating Individual Pure Risk Premium Life Insurance Plan) by paying an additional premium.
Also Read: Features & Benefits of Max Life Smart Term Plan
These term plans provide comprehensive security to your loved ones in case of your early demise. With the accelerated critical illness benefit, you can also avail of financial assistance against life-threatening diseases such as heart attack or kidney failure.
To do that, it is advisable first to calculate your monthly premium payable for the desired coverage amount, using a term plan calculator.
The critical illness benefit will provide a lump sum amount to you in case of a critical illness. This way, you can take care of medical care and other miscellaneous expenses without damaging your savings.
Max Life Cancer Insurance Plan (UIN: 104N093V03) (Non-Linked Non-Participating Individual Pure Risk Premium Health InsurancePlan)
Cancer is one such disease that catches you off-guard mentally as well as financially. If diagnosed, the treatment of cancer can be a huge financial burden for your family.
Max Life Insurance provides a Cancer Insurance Plan (UIN: 104N093V03) (Non-Linked Non-Participating). This plan covers all stages of cancer, and if detected at an early stage, 20% of the initial will be paid upfront, and all future premiums are waived off.
It provides a lump sum amount that can cover all costs associated with cancer diagnosis and treatment, including hospitalization, radiation, chemotherapy and surgery, among others. Based on factors such as heredity, lifestyle habits, and screening test results, list out the types of cancers that you could be vulnerable to. Check the cancer insurance policy to confirm if they are covered under the policy.
All medical expenses come unannounced, and it is better to prepare yourself for the worst. The rising costs of healthcare can dig you deep in debt if not armed with the right health insurance policy. A comprehensive health insurance policy takes away your financial worries and gives you peace of mind.
It is a crucial decision both for you and your family, so make to get the best of your health insurance policy and include essential riders. The right health insurance plan will provide you with a sense of security that your medical needs will be taken care of without any financial hindrance.
Sources:
[1] https://special.ndtv.com/insurance-hai-must-41/news-detail/importance-and-benefits-of-medical-insurance-1975244/1
[2] http://www.businessworld.in/article/Ten-Important-Features-Of-Your-Health-Insurance-Policy/26-11-2016-108860/
ARN:- Jan21/Blg/04-M20
