What is Mediclaim Policy?
Mr. C.S. Sudheer | Posted On Saturday, February 21,2009, 04:01 PM
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Health insurance under the India General Insurance is commonly called as Mediclaim policies. Health insurance policy covers expenses invited during hospitalization and also the expenses during the pre as well as post hospitalization stages like pathological tests buying medicines, etc. Healthcare includes the services developed to safeguard health, including medical facilities, professional and financial services like medical insurance Mediclaim policies are also tax beneficial, as stated under Section 80D, with the maximum amount of deduction being fixed at Rs 10,000 and in case of senior citizens Rs 15,000.
Mediclaim insurance policy covers you and your family members against unexpected medical contingency. A Mediclaim insurance policy is an agreement between you and the insurance company. The policy lists a package of medical benefits such as medical tests, drugs and treatment services. The insurance company charges you a Premium to cover you against the risks. In other words Health insurance protects you and your dependants against any financial constraints arising on account of a medical emergency. Basically, the client pays a sum of money known as the Premium and in turn the Insurance firm would commit to pay a predetermined sum of money to meet the customer's claims.
The importance of Health Insurance, popularly known as Mediclaim has considerably increased in India in the recent years. Awareness and importance of health and health related issues has encouraged this growth. Also, now a days people are financially smart and pay more attention to their financial planning. They know that health would always not remain the same and therefore it is wiser to invest in a comprehensive medical policy. On the other hand, the insurance companies were fast to react to this situation. They saw a market and hence, got out of their shell and evolved. They knew that they had to provide smart medical insurance plans to tap the market.
All these factors have lead to the changing face of the health insurance sector in India. Apart from this, steps taken by the government and the endeavors of the insurance companies are the prime factors inducing this growth.
Contribution of the Government in Shaping the Health Insurance Sector
- The government has taken suitable steps to inform people through different mediums, which have been proved helpful in generating the accurate level of influence.
- The government has interfered whenever the cost of the medical care has become unreasonable. Such government intervention is required to make the process of medical insurance cost-effective and achievable especially for those who are financial deprived.
- The government introduced innovative healthcare products to the medical market since medical insurance is an emerging financial tool in meeting healthcare needs of the Indian population.
- The government established appropriate health infrastructure to support the Mediclaim conveniences that are offered in the market.
- The government has also taken various proposals to support the growth of the insurance sector such as Tax benefit offered under Sec 80 D of the Income Tax Act.
Role of the Private Sector Companies in promoting the Health Insurance Policies
- The private players in the health insurance sector have supported their customers by providing them affordable, inexpensive and easily accessible insurance.
- The insurance companies have given a lot of importance to convenience of the customer. Buying the e-policy online has become a much convenient alternative with the facility to renew it anytime, anywhere.
- The insurance companies have developed precocious Mediclaim insurance policies that not only provide comprehensive coverage but also induce various other benefits.
- Another major step in the health insurance sector is the floater concept, where they cover the entire family in one policy.
- Private companies are constantly improving their products to meet the needs of the people as much as possible. Such steps include various plans that cover critical illnesses, outpatient expenses and others.
Points to be noted while buying a Health Insurance Policy
Adequate Cover
Adequate cover refers to the need to cover the entire family of a person (i.e. spouse, children and dependent parents). Thus, one must opt for a policy, which covers their family at a minimal cost. Consider a floater policy which would cover the entire family more efficiently.Cost-benefit Ground
Cost is a critical factor in the entire decision making process of buying a policy. The cost element depends on the number of dependent members in the family. In simple terms, a dependent is a person who is relying on the individual financially. Thus, the customer has to watch out for the fact that the cost of buying must justify the benefits covered under the policy. In other words, you have to hit a right balance between the cost and benefits available.
Age Factor:
Age is another important factor that needs to be taken into an account. In case of children as well as parents, the age factor becomes more important since beyond a particular age, coverage may not be possible. The maximum age for buying a policy would vary from insurer to insurer.
Whether you are covered by your employer ot not?
Customer must make sure that whether he/she covered under any health insurance plan of their employer? If yes, check out whether the dependents are included under the cover. If not, then they need to find a solution for your dependents.
It is always good to take your own health cover rather than depend on the Office mediclaim policy. If you were to fall ill when you lose your job then your personal mediclaim policy will prove to be very useful.
A mediclaim plan will help you tide over any health crisis you face provided you have taken enough cover. Make sure to take a critical illness rider in the health policy.
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