Top Changes In Health Insurance You Must Know In 2021

Due to the global pandemic there has been an increase in demand for health insurance policies. The spread of coronavirus disease has made people aware that they must have some monetary support for medical expenses that might incur in case of an emergency. But, the health insurance policy can be purchased by an individual only if it meets the basic requirements of the customers at an affordable price. Therefore, IRDAI has made some recent changes in the health insurance policies to make sure that all the customers receive quality treatment at a pocket friendly price. 

The health insurance policies can now be customized to ensure that the coverage of the policy meets the customers demands. It will help the insurance providers to increase the penetration of health insurance policies in India. The necessary changes that have been made by the concerned authority will encourage a large population to invest in health insurance policies and shield the lives of themselves and their loved ones. 

Top Changes In Health Insurance In 2021

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the IRDAI has brought in several important changes in the health insurance policies to facilitate the insurance services for the policyholders. Let us look at some of the recent and significant changes that have been introduced: 

1. Launch of Arogya Sanjeevani Policy

Arogya Sanjeevani Policy is an indemnity-based affordable health insurance policy that was launched in the month of April in the year 2020. It provides coverage to deal with the medical expenses incurred due to the coronavirus spread and the sum assured under this cover range from Rs. 1 Lakh to Rs. 5 Lakh. 

2. Launch of COVID-19 Specific Plans 

Corona Kavach policy and Corona Rakshak Policy are two short term plans that were launched to deal with the costs of treatment and hospitalization in case of COVID-19.  Corona Kavach plan offers indemnity basis covers while Corona Rakshak Policy provides cover on fixed benefit basis. 

3. EMI Options 

During the pandemic, to reduce the financial stress on the policyholders, the insurance providers offer EMI options on the premium payments where the premium can be paid in monthly, quarterly, and half-yearly payments. 

4. Transparency 

The policyholders can declare a disease after 3 months of the policy purchase as the insurance regulator has mandated the insurance providers to specify the list of excluded diseases in their policy terms and conditions.  Therefore, the diseases that the insurer will not cover for 4 years from the date of purchase of policy, will be specified clearly in the policy-related documents. 

5. Cashless Claims

The insurance providers now have introduced an option of cashless claim benefit on their policies where the customer can receive cashless treatment in one of the network hospitals of the insurance company. Also, people who are already insured can receive COVID related claims from day one, while people who purchase a new policy must wait for 15 days of standard waiting period.

6. E-KYC 

Now the  load of the physical documentation process has been reduced on the customers as the policy can be issued on the basis of e-KYC. 

7. Choice In TPAs 

The policyholders can choose a third party administrator of their choice from the list provided by the insurance company and they can request a change of TPA, in case they are not satisfied by the services of their current TPA. 

8. Modern Treatments Included 

The cost of modern treatments like chemotherapy, radiotherapy, etc. can not be denied by the insurer. Covers like domiciliary charges, inpatient hospitalization, etc. will be included but the insurance company can impose sub-limits on your health insurance policy.  

9. Standardised Exclusions 

The wording in the policy-related documents have been made more clear in the case of exclusions and waiting period. The usage of vague and ambiguous words are not allowed by the insurer. That is the insurance provider has to be very specific with the wordings used in the documents, to avoid any inconvenience and confusion at the time of claim settlement process. 

Conclusion 

More such changes have been introduced by the insurance regulatory authority that is IRDAI. These changes have facilitated the entire buying, renewing, and claiming process of insurance policies. 

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Disclaimer: This article is issued in the general public interest and meant for general information purposes only. Readers are advised not to rely on the contents of the article as conclusive in nature and should research further or consult an expert in this regard.