Most employers find that providing health insurance to employees is a great perk that helps them retain employees, provides great recruitment options, and leads to a healthier workforce which is cost-effective in the long term. And as an employee it is wonderful to enjoy those benefits too.
But should you be completely dependent on the insurance provided by your company? The simple answer is NO. And here’s why you should go for a second health plan.
1) Low personal customisation
Corporate health plans are highly customisable but from the employer’s point of view. While deciding upon a group policy, they negotiate over many things like number of critical illnesses and diseases covered, inclusion of dependents, minimum and maximum sum assured, etc., directly with the insurer. What it means is that they provide a one-size-fits-all health plan that may not suit your needs at all.
For example, your corporate plan may cover your spouse but it may not cover your elderly parents. You may, for another example, have a family history of diabetes and may contract that in the future. In this case, you may need diabetes-specific plans to protect yourself. Your corporate plan may not provide for such specific plans. Essentially, it is important that you may use the corporate cover as your primary shield but you should have a plan specific to your needs as backup.
2) Sub-limits and co-payment
Corporate policies often have capped expenses in terms of hospital needs. For example, there may be a sub-limit on the kind of room you can stay in during hospitalisation, there may be a cap on the ambulance expense, a sub-limit on your daily hospital expenses. Furthermore, some corporate policies also have co-payment clauses wherein you have to pay a certain amount of the expense first before the cover kick in.
When you are ill, you do not want to be bothered with such expenses. You should be able to get the best possible care without worrying about which room your policy can afford and which room it couldn’t. You can, therefore, always have a second policy at hand with much higher sub-limits (or none) that can be used in such times.
3) Policy Tenure
Your corporate policy remains in force only as long as you remain employed at the company. The moment you leave the company, the policy coverage stops. Furthermore, it could also lapse once you reach the retirement age. This creates an uncertain period of time (in between jobs) when you are neither earning nor are you protected. It is highly essential that you have a policy to back you up in such conditions and a second, personal, policy may come in handy during transition periods.
4) Coverage Amount
Most corporate policies do not provide a large cover. Some of the best ones may provide cover to the tune of Rs. 5-7 lakh. Yes, this cover can be considered reasonable but with the rising inflation and growing costs, this fixed number may not matter much in the future. Besides, when it comes to even serious conditions like a heart disease or terminal diseases, the cost of treatment at a good hospital may run into tens of lakhs. It is essential, therefore, that you go for a more comprehensive second insurance policy in order to increase your coverage. It is better to be prepared than be sorry later.
5) No Claims Bonus
Corporate plans offer a fixed coverage for the entire duration of your policy. The sum insured remains constant whether you make a claim or not. Personal policies, however, provide no-claim bonus that may increase your sum insured by up to 100% depending on your policy without an increase in your premium. This is an important aspect to consider, especially due to the rising medical costs, and can act as an additional financial shield in the future.
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OneAssure is a distribution platform that helps you make right decisions on matters where health and finances converge. Visit oneassure.in to know more about your health insurance choices.