Most standard health insurance plans take care of hospitalisation expenses in case of illness and accidents. However, there are certain illnesses, which health insurers term as critical illnesses, which are usually not covered by standard health insurance policies. These critical illnesses include paralysis, heart attack, stroke, cancer, major organ transplant, multiple sclerosis, kidney failure/dialysis and many others. It is estimated that such critical illnesses account for almost 60% of the deaths in India.
The good news is that there are several health insurance plans that are tailor-made to take care of these life-threatening conditions. These critical illness insurance plans will help you pay for expenses that standard health insurance policies generally do not. By paying you a lump sum, once the insured is diagnosed with a critical illness, she or he can take care of debt, hospitalisation expenses, lifestyle changes or loss of income.
Dialysis, as a result of end-stage kidney failure usually requires regular, frequent and life-long day trips to the hospitals or medical facilities, as many as three or more times a week. Each visit could cost you between INR 1000/- to INR 5000/- apart from transportation, attendant fees, loss of income, etc. This adds up to INR 20,000/- to INR 100,000 a month depending on frequency, the treatment facility.etc. Without a critical illness policy that specifically covers dialysis, it would be difficult if not impossible to tide through such a situation. There are several health insurers such as Bajaj Allianz, Bharti AXA, HDFC Ergo, SBI, Tata AIG, Chola MS and many others that offer to cover critical illnesses including dialysis. Let us look at some of the plans briefly.
ManipalCigna Lifestyle Protection – Critical Care Health Insurance
This provides a maximum sum insured of INR 25 crores. It covers a total of 15 illnesses under the basic plan and 30 illnesses under the enhanced plan and may be opted for by anyone between 18 to 65 years of age. You may opt for a lump sum payment or a staggered payment over 60 months after diagnosis. The latter offers a 10% additional benefit.
Bharti AXA Smart Super Health Insurance
With the sum insured ranging from INR 5 lakhs to INR 1 crore, this policy also offers an additional lump sum pay-out for certain illnesses over and above the sum insured. It also has a substantial network of hospitals which support cashless treatment.
HDFC Ergo Optima Vital Health Insurance Plan
Formerly known as Apollo Munich Health Insurance, this covers a total of 37 critical illnesses including dialysis. It offers a lump sum pay-out irrespective of the cost of treatment. It offers this on confirmed diagnosis with defined severity of the illness or the date of undergoing specified surgery. With a maximum sum insured of INR 50 Lakhs, this becomes INR 20 Lakhs after the age of 55. It has a waiting period of 90 days.
HDFC Ergo Critical Illness Policy
HDFC Ergo Critical Illness Policy offers coverage of 15 critical illnesses such as heart attack, cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease, Alzheimer’s Disease, kidney failure and others. The sum insured is paid as a lump sum as in the case of most critical illness cover insurance policies. This plan has two variants – the Platinum Plan and the Silver Plan. Both cover kidney failure and dialysis.
Chola MS Critical Healthline Insurance
Available in two variants – standard and advanced, this offers a sum insured per person between INR 3 Lakhs to INR 10 Lakhs for up to 12 critical illnesses. Apart from dialysis it also covers Parkinson’s disease, cancer, stroke resulting in permanent symptoms and others.
Niva Bupa Critical Illness Cover
Offering a coverage of INR 3 Lakhs to INR 2 crores, this plan offers coverage on 20 critical illnesses including dialysis, deafness, loss of speech, major burns, open chest CABG, etc. It also offers a tenure discount if you opt for a 2 or 3 year policy. Added features promised include free look period, assured renewal and direct claim settlement.
To Sum Up
There are several plans that cover critical illnesses not covered by standard health insurance plans. While choosing the critical illness cover plan, study it well and ensure that it complements and balances the existing standard health insurance policy under which you are covered. In this way, you can obtain the maximum benefit with the least stress and at a reasonable price. Read the fine print however. In many cases the cover comes with a clause regarding the specified severity of disease. In other cases, clauses may include pre-existing disease.
