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When it comes to a health insurance plan it is more than a necessity in today’s times. As we know and will even agree that any eventuality does not come with prior notice or information.
In any case, the health of any senior citizen should not be ignored or avoided at any cost. When we talk about growing people and that too old age, it does bring in weakness and ailments. Therefore, it becomes important to opt for the correct health insurance plan for senior citizens.
The health insurance plan for senior citizens are specifically designed by the insurance companies in India for those who are aged between 60 to 65 and above and often cater to the specific needs of senior citizens that most likely general health insurance policies do not cover.
The health insurance plans for senior citizen are designed in a way to reduce the stress both physical as well as emotional in regards to any of the chronic illness or any developing health-related issues or ailments. Most of these health insurance plans for senior citizen offer benefits such as cashless hospitalisation, coverage for pre-existing ailments, or critical illness cover.
The key benefits of the best health insurance plan for senior citizens are listed below:
Before you choose the best health insurance plan for senior citizens, it is prudent to acknowledge, which factors these plans should ideally cover.
Senior citizens are often physically challenged in several ways, and have a higher chance of contracting ailments or disabilities, as well as finding it more challenging to recover from illnesses.
With the best health insurance plan for senior citizens, such issues should be addressed and taken into immediate consideration and should not be neglected at any cost.
Listed below are some of the factors that should be considered before choosing the health insurance plan for senior citizens in India:
If someone has a pre-existing ailment such as diabetes, which may bring complications or if there is a family history of heart problems or any other disease. They should choose a health insurance plan that would cover the pre-existing diseases or one that does not require medical testing.
As medical problems can be stressful in themselves, it is important to have health insurance plans that do not involve a lot of paperwork and ahs the minimal admission process.
Along with the extras, it is important to analyse what exactly is covered by the medical insurance: how many days of hospitalisation, under what diseases, etc. otherwise you may end up paying extra for things not included in your policy document. It is better to opt for a comprehensive health plan for senior citizen, which provides the maximum cover for in-patient expenses, pre and post hospitalization expenses, diagnostic expenses, etc.
Listed below are some of the important aspects that should be given a thought before one zero downs the health insurance plan for senior citizens:
For pre-existing illnesses, many will have waiting periods of months or a year. For senior citizens, a very long waiting period could render the plan useless for their needs.
Choose the plan that minimises the time spent waiting to be covered for a pre-existing ailment. Long waiting periods for severe pre-existing illnesses will render the policy useless for certain people who may need the policy exactly to cover their pre-existing illnesses.
The claims process should be clear and simple, and the percentage of claims that are processed and allowed should also be high. This will reduce the chances of a last-minute mistake or the likelihood that the health insurance plan will not come through.
Not all health insurance plans for senior citizen will cover costs before hospitalisation, including diagnostic costs. Therefore the insured person needs to choose a plan that will cover important factors in pre-hospitalisation costs and not leave that to be paid entirely out of the insured person’s pocket.
Health insurance plan that covers the insured person for an extended period is essential; as otherwise, the entry age on most insurance plans may cause senior citizens to be unable to take health insurance.
During emergencies, having to shift hospitals because the nearest hospital does not accept your insurance can be traumatic or damaging. Therefore, it is best to choose a respected insurer with a vast network of hospitals so that there is easy access to a nearby network hospital. A small hospital network, or one that is not extensive where the insured person lives, may mean that there is an unacceptably high time between the insured person having a medical emergency and them reaching a network hospital.
Most health insurance plans for senior citizens have co-pays, which require the insured person to pay some percentage of the costs of healthcare and hospitalisation. These can quickly pile up and make a real hole in the pocket for those who have a significant illness. Plans with minimal co-payment usually have higher premiums. It is best to do a cost and benefit calculation of likely healthcare costs and whether a higher premium or higher co-pay would be costlier.
The premiums for medical insurance for senior citizens in India are relatively high, corresponding to the high degree of risk attached to insuring the elderly.
Policies with no-claims bonuses can be additionally beneficial as long as the other factors are also acceptable for the insured person.
Along with these policy-related factors, one should also consider personal factors, such as:
In the below table, is a list of the best medical insurance plans for senior citizens offered by different health insurance companies in India:
|
Insurance Provider |
Plan Name |
Age Limit (Minimum to Maximum) |
Cover For Pre-existing Disease |
Medical Check-up |
|
Activ Care Senior Citizen Health Insurance |
55 years – 80 years |
Required |
From 2nd year |
|
|
Silver Health Plan for Senior Citizens |
46 years – 70 years |
Not Required |
From 2nd year |
|
|
Senior Citizens Health Insurance |
18 years – 65 years |
Required |
From 2nd year |
|
|
Care Health Insurance (formerly known as Religare Health Insurance) |
Care Health Freedom Health Insurance (Religare) |
46 years of age and above |
Required and specified diagnostic centres |
From 2nd year |
|
Cholamandalam Individual Healthline Plan |
Max 65 years of age |
After 46 years |
- |
|
|
Health Insurance Platinum Plan |
Any age |
After 55 years |
- |
|
|
Future Health Suraksha Individual Plan |
70 years with lifetime renewal |
- |
From 2nd year |
|
|
Health Optima Senior |
61 years of age and above |
After 46 years |
From 3rd year |
|
|
Individual Medishield Plan |
3 months to 80 years |
Required. Only half of cost reimburse |
From 3rd year |
|
|
Family Health Plan |
Max 65 years of age |
After 60 years |
From 2nd year |
|
|
Liberty Health Insurance |
Max 65 years of age with lifetime renewal |
- |
From 2nd year |
|
|
Lifestyle Protection Accident Care |
Max 65 years of age |
After 55 years |
- |
|
|
Max Bupa Heartbeat Plan |
Max 65 years of age |
Required. Only half of the cost reimbursed. |
From 2nd year |
|
|
Varishtha Mediclaim Policy for Senior Citizens |
60 years – 80 years with lifetime renewal until 90 years |
- |
From 2nd year |
|
|
New India Assurance Senior Citizen Mediclaim Policy |
60 years- 80 years with lifetime renewal until 90 yrs |
- |
From 1.5 years |
|
|
Senior Citizen HOPE Health Insurance |
60 years of age and above |
Required |
From 2nd year |
|
|
Raheja QBE Health Insurance |
Max 65 years of age |
Required |
- |
|
|
HealthGain Health Insurance |
Max 65 years of age |
From 3rd year |
Required |
|
|
Arogya Top Up Policy |
Max 65 years of age |
- |
From 4th year |
|
|
Senior Citizen Red Carpet Health Insurance Plan |
60 years – 75 years |
Required |
From 2nd year |
|
|
MediSenior Health Insurance |
61 years of age and above |
After 55 years |
From 4th year |
|
|
Senior Citizen Mediclaim Policy |
61 years – 80 years |
Required. Only half of cost reimburse |
From 4th year |
|
|
Universal Senior Citizen Health Insurance Plan |
60 years of age and above |
Required |
From 3rd year |
Disclaimer: *Paisawiki does not endorse, rate or recommend any particular insurer or insurance product offered by an insurer.
There are multiple documents required to apply for a health insurance plan smoothly. Therefore, for ideal applications, please have all of your ID documents, address proof, medical health documents handy before applying.
The list of probable documents needed to apply for health insurance is:
This is particularly important for health insurance for senior citizens, as the entry age barriers may restrict some people from getting insured. Some of the probable documents for this include your birth certificate, the mark sheet of your final school exam or a board exam, a passport, Aadhar card, a voting ID, Driving license, PAN card.
Some of the documents in this section are also acceptable as age proof and thus can simply be submitted twice. These include Aadhaar card, the valid passport of the person to be insured, Voter ID, driving license, and PAN card.
The permanent address submitted in your documentation will have to be attested to with address proof. Possible documents for this include a service bill such as an electricity bill or telephone bill, a Ration card, Passport, Aadhaar card, driver’s license, Voter ID, etc.
You would also be required to submit recent passport size photos.
For health insurance plans, which require testing before insurance is put through; the medical reports of these tests would also have to be submitted with these documents. Additionally, business rules might require other documents, although online health insurance policies nowadays proceed fairly smoothly.
Based on the documentation and the company’s process, it should not take very long for your policy to become active.
Medical insurance for senior citizens has some definite rules and regulations that are not entirely the same as other insurance types, even other health insurance types. Some of the rules governing health insurance for senior citizens are as follows. The government constituted a Committee on Senior Citizens Health Insurance to decide what new rules were required.
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India:
A1. Most insurance policies will need to be renewed on an annual basis. However, continuing with the same policy can reduce the hassles of buying a policy.
A2. It depends on the company and the policy. Some insurance policies can be bought purely online. However, most policies will require your signature on the physical policy documents as well as attested copies of your address and ID proof.
A3. It is best to take into account both costs and do at least a basic calculation of what you estimate your co-payment to be about your high premium. If you expect infrequent but high claims amount, then higher co-pay may be worthwhile. However, if you expect that you may require health insurance somewhat regularly, then it is best to have high premiums so that you do not overspend on co-pays.
A4. Typically, regular health checkups are not covered under health insurance policies; even the best health insurance policies for senior citizens do not usually allow claims for checkups that are not related to some illness covered under the policy.
A5. Due to technological breakthroughs, many important surgeries and treatments can now be conducted without hospitalisation. All insurance policies will explicitly mention, which of such daycare treatments without hospitalisation are covered under their insurance.
Some of the best mediclaim policies for senior citizens also cover outpatient treatments and some doctor’s visits.
A6. Under Section 80D of the Income Tax Act of India, senior citizens are entitled to a tax benefit amounting to Rs 30,000 for payment of health insurance premium.
