Health Insurance - Why is It a Must for Smokers?
Are you a habitual smoker? If you are, you may have heard umpteen warnings regarding the dangerous side effects of the smoking habit. However, too many people have also warned you that there is no health insurance plan that covers habitual smokers.
This is a myth. However, you are not alone in harbouring this misconception. According to a survey of over 1000 participants, conducted by ICICI Lombard, over 50 percent of smokers do not possess any kind of health insurance, mainly due to the general belief that health insurers will reject their claims on the grounds that their ailments are a result of their smoking habit. There are however several service providers that do provide health insurance to tobacco users and smokers.
As you must already be aware, the warning on all cigarette packets in India that “cigarette smoking is injurious to health” is very true. There is an increased risk to several diseases such as cancer, lung related diseases such as chronic bronchitis, asthma, COPD or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and TB or tuberculosis as a result of smoking. Smoking is also said to be associated with decreased immunity and rheumatoid arthritis.
As per the Government of India’s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, there are over three thousand five hundred deaths every day in India alone, due to tobacco consumption related ailments. This makes it all the more vital for you to have a health insurance policy in place to cover the cost of any hospitalisation should you also suffer from any of these related ailments in future.
However, while it is possible to procure a health insurance policy even if you are a smoker, this comes at a cost. Persons who declare that they are smokers at the time of purchase of the policy are charged a higher premium than a person of the same age and with the same pre-existing diseases as a non-smoker for a similar insurance cover. The per day consumption of cigarettes is also taken into account while calculating the premium. While you may be tempted to think that this is unfair, it is a fact that the insurer takes on a bigger risk while signing on a policy for a smoker. The higher premium is therefore justifiable.
While the higher cost of premium may tempt a prospective purchaser to avoid disclosure regarding his or her smoking habit, it is not at all advisable. Medical tests can detect nicotine content in the human body system and is likely to lead to your claim being rejected outright. The higher premium cost, which sometimes could be almost double that of a non-smoker, will not discourage one from making a full disclosure when one considers the high medical bills that may have to be paid if one is not covered, or if a claim is rejected due to non-disclosure.
One also needs to be aware of the actions that an insurance service provider can take if one is found guilty of not having made an honest declaration:
- Criminal charges could be brought against you for having conducted an insurance scam
- Your policy could be declared null and void
- Any claim made could be rejected.
While choosing your medical insurance service provider and your policy, be sure to ask the right questions to clear all your doubts. Different policies come with different clauses. Some may cover certain conditions, some may exclude the very same conditions. Sometimes it may happen that your sales agent has promised you coverage of certain disease conditions like cancer, but when the policy arrives, you find it excluded in the fine print. It is however possible to return the policy within the free-look period. This is usually 15 to 30 days from the time of first purchase.
Having said that you can get health insurance even if you are a habitual smoker, this article should in no way be seen as an encouragement to continue your habit. While you can consider it helpful to go in for a health insurance policy if you are a smoker, it will be far more prudent and economically viable to give up smoking. Being a smoker attracts higher premiums not just on your health insurance policy but also on your life insurance policy which can go up by as much as 30% or more. Apart from the gains on your health and your finances, you will also be helping the nation. As per the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the economic burden on the country as far back as 2011 was more than one hundred thousand crores – just from tobacco related disease and death.
Conclusion
Thus, if you are a habitual smoker, it is extremely advisable to purchase a health insurance policy and make a full disclosure regarding your smoking habits. However, it is far more economical to simply give up the habit!
The answer is “Yes”. Most insurance companies will classify you as a smoker if you consume tobacco or tobacco products in any form – whether through bidi/cigarette/cigar smoking, or through consumption of gutka, khaini, etc.
This depends on when you give up smoking and when you purchase your health insurance. Some insurance companies may charge you the “smoker’s” premium even if you have given it up three years ago. Check with your insurer regarding this.
Yes, vaping or smoking of e-cigarettes is also considered as smoking in the eyes of most medical insurance providers. If you only smoke e-cigarettes and classify yourself as a non-smoker, while filling up the required forms at the time of purchase of your policy, your policy is at risk of being considered invalid.
A pre-existing disease condition is any medical condition that was diagnosed within the 48-month period prior to the issue of the first policy by the medical insurance service provider to the client/insured person. This includes ailments and injuries for which signs and symptoms were present during that period.
You could consider porting your policy after you complete at least a year under your current policy. Porting is a protection offered by the IRDAI to individuals purchasing an insurance policy as a result of which you can shift your policy, along with some of the credits gained, from one insurance.