At What Age Should You Buy Health Insurance? Is 25 The Right Age?

What’s the right age to take health insurance?

Is 25 the perfect age to buy health insurance?

These are the most common questions when it comes to buying health insurance at the right time.

However, there is no pre-determined age to take a health policy. The sooner is better. And purchasing one should be on the priority list.

Today’s Millennials aren’t just living under the risk of vector-borne diseases, like jaundice and dengue, but also lifestyle diseases.

And the main causes of diseases are:

• Increase in pollution and stress
• Working long hours
• Lack of active physical activity
• Unhealthy eating habits

Due to these common causes, our body has become sensitive to ailments like obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases such as heart blocks, etc. A lot can be done to stay away from these diseases, but little do we do to not suffer from such ailments.

According to a recent study of the Cardiology Society of India,

• 25% of the people who die of heart attacks are less than 35 years of age.

Isn’t it an alarming statistic? 

Doesn’t it sound good to start securing our future?

Let’s get an insight into why buying a health insurance policy at a young age is beneficial.

Buying health insurance at a young age

Today, healthcare has become really costly. The evolution in science that allows better healthcare comes with a hefty price. On the first hand, the development in medical science is to assure a healthy tomorrow. On the other hand, the medical facilities are too expensive for the majority of people. In some situation, treatment of certain diseases cost a person his/her entire life savings.

Read here Why Women Need to Buy an Individual Health Insurance Policy?

That’s where purchasing a good health insurance policy comes in handy. And if it is bought at a younger age, it brings a lot more benefits. With the policy by your side, you can be financially protected during hospitalisation and sickness. And you can get a range of coverage and a multitude of benefits.

Here is why buying health insurance at an early age is beneficial.

• Lower Premiums: The risks of contracting non-communicable or lifestyle diseases at a young age are very slim. This leads to reduced premiums and lower chances of claim rejection. Also, the cost of insurance is less. 

• Waiting Period: In general, every insurance policy comes with a waiting period of nearly 30-90 days for the plan to be effective even in case of any medical emergency situation. This means that during this waiting period, certain ailments are not covered and the policy is not fully in effect. When you take a policy at a young age, the chances of contracting diseases are very low. It’s a big advantage.

• Better Coverage: When purchasing a policy at the initial stage of adulthood, you can avail a lot of options for add-ons. You have higher chances of getting these add-ons since the health risk is lower. In a few health insurance products, you can get coverage for OPD and many other procedures that are not generally covered in a comprehensive policy.

• Lower Rejection: The chances of your policy getting rejected come down drastically if you look at buying a policy at a young age of 25-30. In contrast, the rejection of insurance coverage is higher for high-risk individuals who choose a policy after 40.

• Comprehensive: Buying a health insurance policy when young lets you enjoy the benefits of comprehensive coverage. Thus, you can have better security during employment and even after retirement.

• Pre-existing conditions: Choosing a plan during your late 40s will increase your financial burden and decrease benefits. Most health insurance companies exclude a multitude of pre-existing conditions from getting covered. It further leads to defeating the purpose of buying a policy.

• Wider options: At a young age, you’ll have a better position of picking out the most suitable plans from a wide range of health insurance products rather than in your late 40s. You can enjoy the freedom of choosing a plan which is best suited to your medical requirements by analyzing all the essential parameters.

• Financial planning: Buying health insurance at a young age not just brings you greater coverage, but also enables you for better financial planning. In addition, you can focus on making other long-term investment options or source of income as you have already managed to deal with health emergencies.

• Longer duration: Many health insurance products come with an upper age limit. By taking a plan between 25-30 of age, you won’t have to worry about age limits. You can enjoy the benefits of health policy for a longer duration.

• Tax benefit: Apart from the above benefits, a policy purchased at a young age also allows you to gain tax benefits for a longer period. The premium paid against health insurance is subtracted from your income under 80D of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

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Conclusion

Health insurance is the most basic yet important step towards securing health as well as financial planning. With the benefits of buying it at a young age, it is advisable to choose a plan as early as possible. While selecting one, it is important to research well about the plans. And choose one that guarantees the most extensive coverage. For example, medication, laboratory costs, hospitalization, critical illnesses and so on.  

You may also like to read 4 Easy Ways to File a Complaint Against Your Health Insurance Company.