If you are already covered under group health insurance provided by your employer ie company, then you can buy an individual plan cost effective insurance.
People buy health insurance so that they do not face any kind of problem in future. At the same time, many companies provide personal health insurance for their employees. However, rising health care costs are preventing a large number of corporate employees from purchasing personal health insurance. Not buying health insurance can save you money, but it can also be a loss for the future.
If you are already covered under group health insurance provided by your employer ie company, then you can buy an individual plan cost effective insurance. That is, if the personal health insurance given by the office is less, then you can adopt the option mentioned here.
top-up health insurance
Additional sum insured is provided for top-up health insurance . Top-up plans are much cheaper than regular health insurance policies. This is because the top-up is deductible in the policy. It does not cover all diseases. However, the top-up plan depends on how many critical illnesses will be covered.
A policyholder can claim for expenses up to the deductible amount from his basic plan, i.e. paid group health provided by the employer. Expenses in excess of deductible can be claimed from a top-up plan.
Types of Top-up Plans
There are two types of top-up plans, which are commonly called standard top-up and super top-up plans. Under the standard plan, the deductible is applied to each claim, whereas for super top-up, the total expenses incurred in the policy year are counted as deductible.
For example, if you make two hospitalization claims of Rs 2 lakh each, and the top-up plan deductible is Rs 3 lakh, the standard top-up plan will not accept any claim. The Super Top-up plan will accept a claim of Rs 1 lakh. In cases of severe illness, hospitalization is required several times a year. In such a situation, the super top-up plan is more beneficial.
Group Top-up Health InsuranceMany companies offer the facility of a group top-up plan in addition to the regular group health insurance, where employees can increase their sum insured at their own cost. The major advantage of this plan is that it is cheaper due to bulk purchase and there is no waiting period. While regular top-up plans have a waiting period of two to four years for pre-existing diseases and specific diseases. The disadvantage of such a scheme is that it is linked to your employment. So, when you pay the premium, it is not a purely personal plan.
affinity top-up
Similar to employer-facilitated group top-up plans, many technology platforms offer group top-up health insurance plans. The technology platforms include payment wallets, HR-tech firms and health-tech firms. They provide insurance to the people at a low cost. However, some waiting period is given in this. The other advantage apart from the cost is that the scheme is not linked to your employment. You can continue to renew this plan even if you change your employer.
Coverage for critical illnesses only
In some cases, especially for government employees, the employer provides unlimited sum insured and health coverage even after retirement. The individual can be covered under such schemes on the basis of self employment or spouse or parents. In such cases the need for an individual health insurance plan is less. One can buy only a critical illness insurance instead of individual health insurance.
Critical illness insurance is much cheaper than individual insurance, and works as a supplementary plan. If the employee is diagnosed with a critical illness, the entire sum assured will be paid to the employee.
