Choosing the Best Health Insurance for Parents

After a life dedicated to a career or caring for the family, during your golden years, you deserve to be indulged. Your life should be all about pursuing a more relaxed daily routine with enjoyable hobbies and rejuvenating vacations from time to time. If you need medical treatment, it should be a comforting, nurturing experience without any concerns about affordability. Having health insurance makes that possible.

In their younger days, several people tend to commit the oversight of not purchasing their health insurance policy since their employer insures them. This culminates in a situation where, after they retire, they do not have health insurance coverage when they need it the most.

Fortunately, the IRDAI has instructed insurance companies to permit purchasing a new parents health insurance plan up to the age of 65. It also insists that if a medical insurance for parents proposal is rejected, the company is bound to offer valid reasons for the rejection in writing. Further, the insurance sector regulator has advised that an insurance company cannot decline the renewal of any parents health insurance scheme except for misrepresentation, moral hazard or fraud. It has also insisted on certain allowances for parents, such as the option to alter their TPS anywhere feasible.

Against this backdrop, almost every company in the health insurance industry has a policy crafted for parents. So, how do you decide what policy is best for you?

How to Choose Health Insurance for Parents?

Ideally, the higher the coverage you opt for, the better. However, there is a direct correlation between the premium that you have to pay and the coverage that you receive. However, some companies will offer to cover more than the basic hospitalisation and pre-and-post-hospitalisation expenses. They offer you a consumable allowance, allowance for a companion, domiciliary hospitalisation, dialysis cover and other add-ons. So, ensure that you get the best value for your money.

Flexibility

Some policies allow you to recharge the sum insured, up to 100% of the original SI, if the amount gets exhausted. At a different level, some companies allow you to purchase a policy for 1-3 years. Look for such options that build useful flexibility into your plan.

Co-Payments

Parents health insurance policies usually have a co-payment clause. This means that the insured has to bear a portion of the claim amount (as specified in the policy). While IRDAI has stipulated that at least 50% of the pre-insurance medical investigation cost must be reimbursed to the parents, look for a policy that gives you the best deal.

Maximum Age to Renew

This differs from issuer to issuer, but some companies offer 'Lifelong renewal'. When you choose an insurer, look for such options.

Pre-existing Illnesses and Waiting Periods

This may be the most important factor to consider since most companies have a waiting period before they cover pre-existing illnesses, and some do not cover them at all. Naturally, the lower the waiting period, the better, and in case you have pre-existing illnesses, as defined in the policy, they should be covered, at least eventually.

Simple Claim Process

This factor is relevant, irrespective of what age you are. Make sure you understand how the health insurance claim process works in advance so that you do not lose time or effort following up on a claim.

Day-care Procedures

A lot of medical policies for parents do not pay for Daycare procedures. To claim the insurance, hospitalisation is compulsory for 24 hours. Due to modernisation today, there are a lot of procedures that do not require any hospitalisation. Hence, it is wiser to opt for a policy that covers the highest amount of daycare procedures.

Network Hospitals

While an emergency at any age requires immediate medical assistance, its importance is even greater for parents. It only warrants a person to check how wide an insurer’s network hospital strength is. It is advised to go for an insurer that covers the highest number of hospitals across a wide range of cities.

The comprehensiveness of Coverage

At a progressed age, it is common for an individual to undergo a series of diagnostic tests & routine check-ups that involve doctor consultation costs, etc. To support this, the Health Insurance policy must cover expenses incurred before hospitalisation as well. These are called Pre-Hospitalization expenses.

It is to be noted that since health insurance plans for Parents tend to be expensive, experts recommend individuals who are looking for health insurance for themselves & their parents to take separate policies.

What Does Health Insurance for Parents Not Cover?

• Diseases contracted or diagnosed within 30 days of receiving the health insurance for parents.
• Any sort of non-allopathic treatment
• Expenses occurring for self-inflicted injuries
• Cosmetic surgery
• Expenses occurring for the treatment of drug abuse
• Expenses for general dental treatment, lenses, and spectacles, unless needed due to an accident
• Injuries occurring as a result of war, etc
• Medical expenses for the treatment of AIDS

Disclaimer: Please read the brochure and prospectus to know more about our health insurance plans, as conditions may vary.