Maya was able to save lakhs of rupees during the second wave of Covid-19. Unfortunately, she was diagnosed with moderate Coronavirus in May 2021. She had to undergo a 12-day hospitalisation and spent ₹2.4 lacs.
Do you want to know how she was able to take care of her health and her pocket?
Well, to rescue her, there was a team of doctors and her weapon—personal health insurance.
To know how adequate personal health insurance can help you in distressing times, keep reading further:
How does a Comprehensive Health Insurance Policy Help?
Your personal health insurance will cover the cost of hospitalisation along with pre-and-post hospitalisation Covid-19 treatment expenses. This can also cover the in-patient and out-patient costs incurred during the treatment (depending on your policy).
In-patient expenses occur when you are briefly admitted (for 24 hours or more) to the hospital for treating Covid-19. Similarly, out-patient expenses can arise when your treatment might not require hospitalisation.
Out-patient expenses can also occur in cases of routine check-ups or visits to a doctor’s clinic.
Covid-19 Insurance Vs. Personal Health Insurance
Generally, a typical health insurance policy will also cover your Covid-19 hospitalisation cost.
IRDAI (Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India) has introduced two Coronavirus-specific insurance plans. These are Corona Kavach and Corona Rakshak. You can buy either of these plans in addition to your personal or corporate health insurance plan.
Let’s take a look at each of them.
Corona Kavach and Corona Rakshak
Buying Corona Kavach can be advantageous when you already have a health insurance plan. Its sum assured ranges from ₹50,000 to ₹5 lac.
It can cover most of your in-patient and out-patient expenses as well as ambulance charges, medicines, costs of PPE kits and other such expenditures incurred these expenses during the treatment of Covid-19.
Corona Kavach covers the treatment of comorbidities (simultaneous presence of two or more medical conditions or diseases) and pre-existing illness along with and during your Covid-19 treatment.
Corona Rakshak is also a coronavirus-specific personal health insurance plan for individuals between 18-65 years. Its sum assured ranges from ₹2.5 lac to ₹5 lac.
This policy only pays for hospitalisation of 72 hours or more for Covid-19 treatment. It can also cover expenses incurred for buying nebulisers, oxygen cylinders, PPE kits, and more.
A Few Points for Comparison
- You can customise your health insurance coverage as required in personal health insurance. But you cannot do this in Covid-19-specific insurance.
- Your personal health insurance can cover your day-care treatment cost. This is not available with Covid-19 insurance.
- Your personal health insurance plan comes with lifetime renewability. But Covid-19 specific policies have limited renewability. As per the latest update, they can only be renewed until a particular period. For example, you can buy or renew Covid-insurance till 30th September 2021.
- Covid-specific plans are also of shorter tenure, such as 3.5 months, 6.5 months or 9.5 months, compared with regular health insurance plans, which is 12 months or even more if it’s a long-term health plan.
Click here to read more about covid insurance vs regular health insurance.
What is Not Covered Under Personal Health Insurance?
There are a few expenses that are not covered under your personal health insurance. Your personal health insurance does not cover the non-medical expenses that you may incur during Covid-19 treatment. For example, the cost for nebulizers, PPE kits, masks and gloves, oxygen cylinders, and more will be excluded.
Further, your medical treatment cost incurred during home treatment or at a covid-care centre will also not be covered if it doesn’t ultimately lead to hospitalisation.
Therefore, having a covid-specific policy along with your personal health insurance can make your coverage comprehensive.
Buying Personal Health Insurance is the Need of the Hour
Your health insurance covers you starting the day you are diagnosed with Covid-19.
However, it would help if you bought insurance when you are fit and healthy. This is because this health insurance policy has a standard waiting policy. Only if you are diagnosed with Covid-19 post your waiting period will you be covered.
Keeping this in mind, what would happen if you were diagnosed while purchasing the policy?
In such a case, Covid-19 will be considered as a pre-existing illness. As a result, your personal health insurance would exclude your hospitalisation expenses during Covid-19.
Therefore, you need to make a quick choice if you want to be insured before the third wave.