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Key points to consider before buying health insurance?

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Published on July 13, 2021. EST READ TIME: 3 minutes

A good health insurance plan is your best ally at the time of a medical emergency. However, picking just any health plan will not give you all the benefits you deserve in a mediclaim policy. Due diligence and research must be carried out before investing in a health insurance plan. Different insurance providers prioritise different benefits and features. You should be guided by your own individual or family’s needs before choosing a plan.

Here is a checklist of a few important features that must be considered and included as part of your health insurance plan regardless of the annual premium amount or sum insured for coverage.

1. Good Customer Care

   The insurance provider should have a history of providing good customer care, easy claim settlement and streamlined renewal processes. This is an especially important feature of health insurance providers as you will be contacting them at a time of a medical emergency. The pace and thoroughness with which claims are processed and expenses reimbursed sets good policies apart from bad one.

    

2. Claim Settlement

   Pay attention to details such as claim settlement ratios and the number of days it takes to settle a claim. This information will be provided upfront by the insurance provider. This is important because if the company rejects or only partly reimburses claims presented to it, it may not be a good health insurance plan for you. Reading reviews online and speaking to existing policyholders may be a good way to determine if the policy provider stays true to its word.

    

3. Sum Insured

   A wide range of sum insured options offer something for everyone. Optima Secure offers coverage starting at INR 5 lakhs a year to INR 2 crores a year. Depending on your needs, prevailing health conditions, age and income you can pick a scheme best suited to you within this broad range of coverage options.

    

4. Network Hospitals

   An insurance provider should have a large network of hospitals. It is admission in one of these hospitals that makes features such as cashless transactions, consultations, e-opinions for critical illnesses and daily allowance for shared rooms, etc. possible. Another factor to consider would be the proximity of your place of residence to any one of the network hospitals of the insurance provider. After all, you are most likely to visit a hospital close to your home in case of an emergency. Optima Secure offers access to nearly network of 10,000 hospitals that customers can choose from.

    

5. Preventive Health Check-ups

   Annual medical check-ups are a benefit thrown in with most health insurance policies. You can undertake a number of tests, scans and other work ups up to a certain limit at no extra cost to your annual premium in the following year. In this way, you maintain a routine of health check-ups that also enables you to keep a tab on your health.

    

6. Lifetime Renewal

Sticking with one insurance provider has its benefits. Not only do you build a relationship with your account manager, certain benefits such as loyalty discounts, 2x increase in your coverage over 2 years, etc. become possible. When an insurance provider offers lifetime renewal you don’t have to worry about going through the hassles of filing paperwork afresh and can leverage your long-standing relationship with the insurance company as you grow older.

Conclusion

Health insurance plans are an important asset that provide financial security during times of medical emergencies. They offer wide ranging benefits for a small annual premium. Each health insurance provider offers varying features at a different value. To know what suits you best, study a few different policies before selecting one.