How to Buy Cheap & Best Health Insurance in India?
Amit, a software engineer in an MNC, wants to buy a cheap health insurance.
Despite being covered under a corporate health plan by his employer, he tends to buy a separate health policy.
The question arises ‘Does Amit need a separate health policy?’
Is he doing the right job by purchasing a personal health cover?
Definitely, yes.
A group policy by the employer is temporary. It becomes ineffective the moment Amit will quit the job.
If you’re not backed by personal health insurance, rising medical costs and the spurt of lifestyle diseases can break your savings. Also, a medical emergency can attack you anytime and impact you emotionally and financially.
So, by choosing a personal health policy, Amit is doing a great job.
But the sad part of the story is that Amit is feeling helpless in finding a cheap insurance plan due to several clauses and conditions.
If you’re like Amit and can’t buy a health insurance plan due to expensive premium rates, read this post. It consists of helpful guides for buying cheap and best health insurance.
Factors to Consider
Before deciding a plan, considering the following factors can be helpful. Remember:
- You should choose a policy, which is available for the lifetime
- After a policy is issued, no insurer can deny claims
Find below the complete guide to buying cheap health insurance in India.
Buy as early as possible
Buy health cover for the best price. Yes, the younger you’re, the cheaper the policy. At 23, health cover with Rs. 4 Lakh sum insured may cost you around Rs. 5,000. At 30, you’ll have to spend around Rs. 6,000 whereas at 45 the premium could be around Rs. 8,000 for the same policy. So, buying a policy as early as possible lets you pay the lowest premium.
Add-on cover
Most of us tend to buy a health insurance policy that comes with all the good features, like the high cover, less premium, OPD cover, best claim settlement, maternity benefits, quick claim approval, and so on.
But, no single plan comes with all these benefits. It is advisable to go for an add-on cover. Some health insurance comes with additional benefits that may include maternity benefits, OPD cover, etc. You need to pay a little extra premium for add-on cover.
Whom to cover?
If you’re single, then go for an individual policy. On the other hand, if you tend to buy a policy for your family, then choose a family floater plan. However, it is important to consider the health conditions of the family members. This becomes more important for those having parents above 50 years old with a medical history. Take up a plan that can offer adequate coverage for the family members.
Live a good lifestyle
To buy an affordable health insurance policy, try to live a good lifestyle. The kind of lifestyle you lead affects the policy premium. Leading a good lifestyle keeps diseases at bay, thus you will get the lower policy premium.
Go for lower coverage
If you want to purchase a health policy for an individual, go for lower coverage. You’ll have to pay less premium. You can enhance the Sum Insured limit latter by paying a little more premium once your financial status improves. Don’t fail to compare health insurance with lower coverage online to trace out the cheapest policy.
Choose deductibles & co-pay
Some Health insurance companies offer deductible and co-payment options voluntarily. If you choose these features, you can reduce the premiums on the plan. However, you need to search for the products that have these features. You will also need to select the right amount of deductible as you’ll have to pay the amount while making a claim.
Select long-term insurance
It’s important to note that the premium of long-term health insurance is lower than the premium of mediclaim plans with an annual term. It is advisable to pick a health insurance policy with 2 or 3-year tenure. These days, a few insurers offer insurance products with long-term plans.
Key Takeaways
These are some of the points to be taken into account to minimize medical insurance premiums. There are also many other tricks you can implement to keep health insurance premiums low. Once you buy the plan, try to grab ‘No Claim Bonus’ by not making any claims.
Also Read
Bajaj Allianz - An Affordable Health Insurance Choice
If you heed to these tips, you can choose a cheap and best health insurance plan.