Protecting your family from financial burden during any unfortunate medical emergency is of utmost importance. To ensure such financial backing, the right family health insurance plans are necessary. However, choosing one among the many available family health insurance plans can be a tricky task. Therefore, you should always keep some important points in mind before buying one. Let’s have a look at these pointers that will help you make the right decision about which family health insurance plan to opt for.
10 Things to Consider While Buying Family Health Insurance Plans
Mentioned below are the 10 important pointers that you should remember before buying a health insurance plan for your family:
- Sum Insured
Before getting family health insurance, you should consider the sum insured offered by the plan. This sum should be sufficient to cater to the medical requirements of the family. Age of family members, pre-existing ailments, etc. should be kept in mind while deciding this sum. If the parents are also included in the family insurance plan, the sum insured should be higher as the expenses increase with age.
- Premium Amount
After the sum insured, the premium amount should also be kept in mind. A premium is an amount you pay at periodic intervals to keep the policy active. If you increase the insured sum, the premium amount will also increase. Plan the budget accordingly and then decide both these amounts.
- Network Hospitals
While buying a family health insurance plan, always make sure the number of network hospitals of the insurer is high. A large number of network hospitals means that you can avail the cashless claims facility easily. You don’t need to pay anything to the network hospital while taking treatment as the insurer will directly settle the amount with the hospital.
- Pre and Post Hospitalisation Expenses
A good family health insurance plan should cover both pre as well as post-hospitalization cover. You may need to visit the doctor before or after and also undergo several tests. Avoid plans that do not offer such coverage.
- Waiting Period
Almost every insurance plan has a waiting period for pre-existing illnesses and other benefits. This waiting period is usually around 2 to 5 years. Always go for a plan with a shorter waiting period.
- Claim Settlement
The process to settle the claim should be simple and seamless. The claim settlement ratio is a good indicator of the same. Higher the claim settlement ratio, the better the insurer. Always go for an insurer with a good claim settlement ratio.
- Check Exclusions
Every health insurance plan has several exclusions. Check these exclusions before starting a family health insurance. If you ignore any such exclusion, it could prove costly in an emergency medical situation.
- Daycare Procedures Included or Not
Several insurers give coverage to only those hospitalisations that are of more than 24 hours. However, some treatments do not require you to stay hospitalised for a day and may get done in hours. Therefore, choose an insurance plan that gives coverage for such daycare procedures.
- Ambulance Charges Included or Not
The cost of ambulance rides can create a hole in your pocket. Choose a family health insurance plan that covers the ambulance expenses. Also, check if the air ambulance transportation is covered or not.
- Alternate Treatment Expenses
Nowadays, treatments of Ayurveda, Homoeopathy, etc. are gaining popularity. Several insurance providers cover these expenses that are associated with in-patient care for such alternative treatments. Before you finalise a plan, check for this alternate therapy coverage.
Conclusion
Family health insurance plans are necessary and you can make the most out of them by also adding several add on covers. Before getting a family health insurance plan, do thorough research and keep the above-mentioned points in mind. That said, make sure to select the family health insurance plan with good customer care service and add on covers so that you can safeguard your finances and increase your savings.
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