Individual vs Family Health Insurance Plans

A health insurance policy is one of the most valuable and wise investments to be made as soon as you start earning. It not only provides the policyholders with financial security but also ensures the quality treatment at the private hospitals. A standard health insurance cover comes with features like hospitalization costs, medication bills, room rents, ambulance charges, healthcare checkups, etc. It provides monetary compensation to the policyholders in case of a medical emergency. Different types of plans are available in the market like the individual plans, family floater plans, maternity benefit covers, critical illness plans, etc.

Individual health insurance plans provide coverage to a single person and come with comprehensive features for the individual insured under the plan. While, family floater health insurance covers provide for the medical expenses of all the members of a family insured under the policy. It comes with a single sum assured which is distributed equally among all the members under the cover. It can include you, your spouse, children, and dependent parents with enough coverage for all.

About Individual Health Insurance Plan

An individual health insurance policy is meant to cover only one person under the plan, and the entire sum assured is dedicated for the single policyholder of this plan. It comes with comprehensive coverage and features that can be customized by the insurer according to the policyholders needs. The individual health insurance plans come with extensive coverage for an individual and can be bought if a person is suffering from any pre-existing diseases. Let us look at some of the prominent benefits of an individual health insurance plan:

• Wide and complete coverage for a single individual.
• This plan is affordable and comprehensive for the customers.
• It comes with tax reduction benefits under Section 80D of Income Tax Act.
• Customers have the liberty to customize their plans according to their requirements.
• No claim bonus is provided to the customers if a claim is not made in a policy year.

A person with higher health risks in the family must have a separate individual health insurance plan to look after the medical expenses. This helps the person to get over the financial stress and avoids them from spending their savings.

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About Family Floater Health Insurance Plan

A family health insurance policy is a health insurance plan under which multiple members of a family share a single plan. The premium and sum assured under this cover is shared among all the members of the family insured under this plan. This plan is cost effective as the premium is affordable.You can cover yourself, your spouse, children, and dependent parents under a single policy. When investing in a family floater plan, you must choose a higher sum assured option to get enough monetary support for all the members. If a person in your family is suffering from a critical disease or is a senior citizen, then it is wise to buy a separate health insurance plan for them, to get sufficient coverage for the other members in case of a medical emergency. Following are some of the benefits of a family floater plan that can be availed by the policyholders:

• It ensures stress free hospitalization for all the members of the family without worrying about the treatment costs.
• Family discounts are provided on this plan when new members are added within the cover.
• The premium is distributed among all the members within the plan and therefore, it is cost effective and affordable.
• By paying extra premiums, you can include your parents and in-laws within the same cover.
• Additional COVID-19 specific health insurance plans are also available under this policy for the customers.
• Tax deduction benefits are provided on the premium payment of the policy under Section 80D of the Income Tax Act.

Conclusion

Both individual and family floater health insurance plans have their own significance, but people who are at a risk of life-threatening diseases must be insured under an individual health insurance cover to get sufficient sum assured for their medical treatment. You must carefully read the fine print of the policy papers to make sure that your requirements have been met.

Also Read: Importance of Health Insurance for Family

Disclaimer: This article is issued in the general public interest and meant for general information purposes only. Readers are advised not to rely on the contents of the article as conclusive in nature and should research further or consult an expert in this regard.