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Health insurance is essential for senior citizens to receive good medical care in old age. It acts as a shield against high medical costs and ensures that they get the best medical care without worrying about the cost of treatment. However, due to pre-existing health conditions, seniors have to pay higher premiums for health insurance. Moreover, the number of health insurance claims has increased significantly after the pandemic, leading to higher health insurance premiums. In such a situation, it becomes difficult for low-income senior citizens to afford a health insurance plan.
Here are some strategies to manage health insurance costs and get the best policy for senior citizens at an affordable premium.
How to Buy an Affordable Health Care Policy for Senior Citizens?
You can consider the below-given tips to manage the cost of a health insurance plan as per your budget:
Invest Early
It is always recommended that you invest in a health insurance plan at a younger age and keep it renewed without any breaks. With continuous coverage, you get many benefits, such as low premiums due to a low-risk profile, no claim bonus, and no pre-policy medical check-ups.
Consider Senior Citizen Health Insurance Plans
The best medical plan for senior citizens is the health insurance plan designed specially to suit the needs of senior citizens. Such plans have features like reduced waiting periods for pre-existing diseases, complimentary annual health check-ups, OPD coverage, etc. You can even consider buying these plans for your parents who are senior citizens and get tax benefits.
Opt for Co-payments
Co-payment refers to a percentage of the total medical claim that will be borne by the policyholder. It is a great option to reduce your premiums. However, opting for a co-payment outweighs the cost vs benefit of the policy as you will have to pay a certain percentage of your medical bills, which will reduce the scope of the coverage. Also, note that a co-payment is your choice.
Deductibles
Another option, in addition to co-payment, is a deductible. A deductible is an amount a policyholder agrees to pay before the insurer settles the rest of the claim. So, the insurer pays for claims that are beyond the deductible amount. For instance, you choose a deductible of ₹ 25,000, and you have a medical claim of ₹ 1,00,000. So your insurer will pay you ₹ 75,000 only. In case the claim amount is less than ₹ 25,000, the insurer will not pay anything. Mediclaim plans for senior citizens with high deductibles have lower premiums.
Top-up Plans
There are instances when you are not able to afford a comprehensive health insurance policy due to high premiums. You can enhance the coverage of a regular health insurance policy with the help of a top-up plan. Top-up plans are cheaper because of a high deductible amount. This deductible is covered through your regular health insurance. So a top-up plan provides coverage after the sum insured of your regular health insurance plan is exhausted.
Use Government Schemes
There are many government-sponsored health insurance schemes available for low-income senior citizens. These schemes are offered by the Central as well as State governments such as Ayushman Bharat, Varisht Mediclaim Policy and many more. These schemes are one of the best senior citizen health insurance plan options that provide health insurance coverage at a subsidised rate to lower-income groups.
Utilise Wellness Benefits
Nowadays, many insurers offer preventive and wellness benefits to promote good health among policyholders. They reward individuals who use these benefits with discounts and rebates for health check-ups, consultations and other fitness services. These benefits can also be used to lower the renewal premiums.
Consider Family Floater Plans
For senior citizens living with their children or parents, family floater plans can also be beneficial in terms of lower premiums. These plans cover the entire family on payment of a single premium, making them highly affordable for lower-income families.
Tax Benefits
When you pay for health insurance premiums, you are eligible for tax benefits. If you are a senior citizen, you get additional tax benefits. These tax benefits help lower the cost of your health insurance plan. Remember to maintain a record and proof of your health insurance premium payments to claim these tax benefits on your tax return.
Important Features to Look For in a Senior Citizen Health Insurance Plan
Here are some important features one must ensure when buying senior citizen health insurance plans.
1. No Claim Bonus: No claim bonus is a beneficial feature that lets you enhance coverage or get discounts on renewal premiums.
2. AYUSH Coverage: AYUSH coverage provides coverage for alternative treatments. It is a useful feature as many senior citizens prefer alternative treatment over conventional treatments.
3. Domiciliary Coverage: This feature covers treatment at home. It is an important feature for senior citizens as sometimes it becomes difficult to admit an elderly patient to a hospital due to their fragile condition.
4. Reduced Waiting Periods: Health insurance plans for senior citizens often have reduced waiting periods for pre-existing diseases. Consider such plans to have better coverage. Also, one can consider buying PED waiting period waiver add-on to reduce the waiting period.
5. Sub-limits: Some plans have sub-limits specified for certain diseases. Understand the sub-limits of a plan to ensure that the plan coverage matches your health care needs.
In Conclusion
Selecting the best policy for senior citizens is an important decision that requires careful evaluation of an individual’s medical needs and the health insurance options available. Investing in a suitable health insurance plan early in life ensures peace of mind and financial security in your old age. Care Health Insurance understands the unique requirements of senior citizens and hence provides the best health insurance plans for senior citizens with varying sum insured and coverage options at affordable premiums. With our ‘Care Senior’ plan you can ensure quality health care and save on premium as well. Features like zone based premium, automatic recharge of sum insured, up to 150% increase in coverage with No Claim Bonus Super (optional benefit), Annual health check-ups etc. make this policy worth your money. You can allow our executives to connect with you for detailed policy information
>> Also Read: Importance of Buying Health Insurance for Senior Citizens
Disclaimers: All plan features, benefits, coverage, and claims underwriting are subject to policy terms and conditions. Kindly refer to the brochure, sales prospectus, and policy documents carefully.
