HOW MUCH HEALTH INSURANCE DO YOU NEED TO COVER YOUR SPOUSE, CHILDREN, AND PARENTS

The Covid-19 pandemic has made us realise the need for a health insurance plan. A health insurance policy is also necessary for your financial planning. The correct medical insurance cover will pay for the treatment and health care costs.

Why Should You Choose a Health Insurance Plan?

The main reason for choosing a plan is because of expensive treatments and the different diseases. Other than illness, family health insurance plans also cover medical expenses for accidental injuries or medical contingencies. During a medical emergency, the expenses cannot be postponed or ignored.

Medical expenses can also empty one's pocket. So, to cover the expensive treatments, a health insurance plan is necessary. The insurance plan covers all the medical expenses, treatment costs, and hospitalisation charges. Therefore, a health insurance plan will protect you and your family during a medical emergency and protect your savings.

What are the Different Types of Health Insurance For Your Family?

Family Floater Health Insurance

A family floater health insurance is a family cover that includes the medical expenses of the entire family. The plan will cover the insurance holder, the spouse, and four children. The best part of a family floater insurance plan is that your children will be covered from birth. The family health cover will include everything from hospital stays to infant vaccinations.

As the children become adults, they will be treated as separate individuals. So, they will enjoy the benefits like the parents. Some health insurance plans cover children 90 days after birth. So, the infant’s insurance needs to be renewed every year after paying a certain premium.

The family floater plans cover the children, infants, and teenagers. The upper limit is 25, after which they will not be included in the family health insurance coverage.

Benefits Of the Family Floater Health Insurance

• The primary holder will enjoy tax benefits up to Rs 30,000 on plans for senior citizens. The discount would be about Rs 25,000 for others.
• You will also receive special discounts when you add members to the insurance plan. The premium charges of each member will depend on the age.
• As the whole family is covered in one health insurance plan, it will be easier for the policyholder to track the costs that are covered. So, the policyholder can easily file a claim with the insurance company.
• You need to pay a fixed premium amount for the entire duration of the policy.
• You can also include multiple add-on covers in the policy when necessary.

Senior Citizen Health Insurance Plan

You can also opt for senior citizen health insurance for parents. The plan will cover any individual aged 60 and above. As the plan offers health insurance coverage for parents, it covers the necessary benefits that senior citizens would require in a hospital. The benefits include pre-existing disease coverage and OPD coverage.

Things to Consider Before Choosing the Best Health Insurance Plan for a Family?

Now, we will discuss the steps you must follow before selecting the right health insurance plan for your family.

1. Firstly, you have to select what type of insurance plan you need.
2. The next step is to calculate the sum required for health insurance.
3. The next step is to explore the various healthcare plans offered by the companies. You must ensure that the healthcare plan has all the necessary coverage benefits.
4. While buying the health insurance plan for your family, you also need to check the sub-limits and the various limits that are applicable.
5. Next, you have to ensure that your plan allows optional coverage benefits. These benefits or riders are available at an additional premium. The policyholder can add them to the cover when renewing the policy.
6. You also need to check the list of partner hospitals and nursing homes that the insurance company covers.
7. The primary holder needs to check the pre-existing waiting period. If a family member has some illness, there is a pre-existing waiting period of about 12 to 48 months.
8. Remember to compare the various insurance plans offered by the different companies. You must compare the benefits and not the premium costs.
9. Before buying the insurance plan, always check the exclusion list.
10. Find out about the premium discounts that the company offers with your plan.

FAQs - Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. What are the value-added benefits that you need?

Benefits that you must check are:

• The number of free doctor consultations
• Free assessment of health
• The loyalty program at wellness outlets
• Medical second opinion
• Free health checkups

Q2. What are the premium discounts?

While buying the insurance plan, you have to look out for the following discounts:

• The discount for buying a long term insurance policy
• Discount for adding one or two members to the policy
• The no-claim bonus discount for not claiming on the previous year
• Discount on getting a policy online
• Discount on maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Q3. What are the different categories of healthcare plans?

Some of the healthcare plans include:

• Individual health care plan
• A family floater plan
• Disease-specific plan
• Health insurance cover parents
• Critical illness plan
• Child health care plan
• Top-up and super top-up plan.

Q4. Can I Add My Spouse to My Existing Healthcare Plan?

Most insurance companies will allow the primary holder to add their spouse to the health insurance plan. After getting married, you get about 60 days to add your spouse to the insurance program as a dependent.