We cannot run away from health disorders forever. As we grow old, we may develop/contract diseases. With the increase in age, our immunity decreases. Healthcare treatments can take a toll on our finances. In order to keep healthcare-related financial burdens at bay, one must opt for one of the best health insurance plans available in India. It will provide much-needed insurance coverage for an individual as well as on a family floater basis.
Family health insurance plans help people keep track of the cost of medical care that needs to be spent on the entire family. Additionally, it helps in saving on healthcare costs for individual family members. Health insurance policies help to afford world-class health treatment and ensure our financial safety at the same time.
You may know that an insurance plan is a lifesaver when it comes to medical emergencies and helps to minimize unexpected expenditures. However, you should not forget that just like any other business, an insurance company wants to make profits, as much as they can. If they start to provide health insurance coverage the moment the insurance buyer buys a healthcare plan, how would they be able to survive? That is why there is a waiting period. Every insurance provider provides insurance coverage after the end of the waiting period. During the waiting period, no insurance provider is liable to provide the insurance coverage.
Types of Waiting Periods
Let us first start by understanding the different types of waiting periods that come with health insurance plans, especially family health insurance plans:
1. Regarding Pre-existing Diseases
This is related to diseases that exist before an individual opts for coverage. In India, obesity is an epidemic. Health conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure are quite prevalent.
When you fill in the health insurance application form, you are supposed to disclose all diseases you have. If your application is accepted, you can acquire insurance coverage for pre-existing illness after the end of the specified waiting period.
2. Specific Diseases May Have a Reduced Waiting Period
When going through family health insurance plans, you need to check the age of every member you want to cover in the family floater policy. Assess the waiting period for all the ailments your family members are suffering from. The good news is that even though some conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure have a longer waiting period, other diseases come with a shorter waiting period.
3. General Waiting Period
When it comes to health insurance, the waiting period is generally 30 days. If you opted for a personal accident coverage, the insurance policy will cover the expenses for accidents after the date of policy inception.
4. Additional Waiting Period
Additionally, when it comes to newborn baby coverage, most family health insurance plans will have a 3-month waiting period. The maternity benefits are also offered in some plans but the waiting period ranges between 9 months to 36 months.
Factors Affecting the Waiting Period
The three primary factors which help in deciding the waiting duration are basically the insurance company, the kind of policy that insurance buyer has opted for and the coverage that the potential insurance buyer needs. The waiting period varies per insurance provider and it varies for the insurance buyer as well.
If the insured person survives the waiting period, then the insurer is bound to provide pre-decided insurance coverage.
The Bottom Line
The options are endless. Also, don’t get disheartened if you have a major illness. With a little extra premium payment, you can get your critical illness covered too without any hassle.
Good things don’t come at a cheap price and a comprehensive policy requires you to shell out a little more than a basic health insurance policy. Rest assured, some extra money paid now can result in you saving a lot of money otherwise. Hence, you need to get a health insurance early on and find the best policy after comparing various health plans.
