Family Health Insurance - Features and Benefits

For any person, the health and financial security of their family is the top-most priority. A family health insurance plan ensures that your loved ones are financially secure during medical contingencies. Moreover, considering the medical costs in India and across the globe, availing high-quality healthcare facilities has become expensive. Having an adequate family health plan allows you to avail these services at an affordable price without burning a hole in your savings. In this article, let’s look at the benefits of family health insurance benefits and its features.

Important Update (Dated May 30, 2024) – Good news for Health Insurance policyholders! According to the Master Circular on Health Insurance Business 29052024 rolled out on May 29, 2024 by IRDAI, insurers are to decide on the request for cashless claims within 1 hour of receiving the request. Also, the final claim is to be granted within 3 hours after the policyholder’s discharge from the hospital. Insurers have been directed by IRDAI to establish necessary systems and procedures for this process by July 31, 2024.

 

The Master Circular on Health Insurance Business 29052024 circular is available here - https://irdai.gov.in/document-detail?documentId=4942918

Features of Family Health Insurance

A family health plan provides medical coverage for you, your spouse and two children. Some insurance providers also offer provisions for including your parents, in-laws or extended family members. There is a single sum insured for the entire family. All the family members covered under a family health plan can claim this sum insured amount. In case of the death of any family member, the policy will not terminate. The surviving family members can continue to enjoy health insurance benefits.

Benefits of Family Health Insurance

• Single Cost-Effective Premium

All the people covered in a family insurance plan are covered under a single health policy. This means that you do not have to pay separate premiums for individual members of your family. When compared to purchasing individual health plans for each member, a family floater plan enables you to avail a much more affordable premium amount. This single premium helps save a lot on securing the insurance needs of your dependents.

• Zero Hassles in Managing Policies

Keeping track of the premium paid and claims made on individual health insurance plans for your family members could prove to be tiresome. However, with a family health plan, keeping track of your insurance policy can be much less of a hassle.

Having all your family members covered under a single insurance plan also eliminates the possibility of compromising on medical expenses for any of your family members. This enables you to focus on the recovery rather than worry about the financial aspect of the treatment.

• Flexibility to Add More Members

Under an individual cover, you need to buy a new health policy each time you wish to insure a new member of your family. However, a family insurance plan offers the flexibility to add new family members to the existing plan itself. However, it is advised to make sure you have opted for sufficient coverage while adding new members to your policy.

• Coverage for Parents & In-Laws

Some insurance companies also provide an option to include your parents or in-laws in the policy by paying a little extra premium. This helps you cover the healthcare costs for both sides of your family. However, you must consider the age of your parents or in-laws in case they are senior citizens as this can lead to an increased premium quote. Instead of adding them to your family floater plan, you can opt for a much-suited senior citizen health insurance.

• Option to Personalise Insurance

Health insurance policies come with add-on benefits that allow you to personalise the plan based on your individual insurance requirements. Thus, you can choose to purchase key add-ons like maternity cover, newborn baby cover, hospital cash cover, critical illness cover and more! Though you need to purchase these covers separately, you can save up greatly in the future. Based on the policyholders of the plan, you can opt for suitable add-on benefits.

• Tax Benefits

Much like some other insurance plans, health insurance offers tax benefits as well. The premium paid on any health insurance plan can be claimed for tax deduction under Section 80D of the Income Tax Act, 1961. You can claim a maximum deduction of up to ₹25,000 on your family health insurance plan.

If you are a senior citizen (above the age of 60 years), then you can claim a maximum deduction of up to ₹50,000. The same is applicable if you are paying health insurance premiums for your old parents who are 60 years or older.

• Availability of Discounts

When you add more family members to your family insurance plan, some insurance providers also offer discounts on the premium.

Family Vs Individual Health Insurance

When compared to an individual health policy, a family health policy offers several advantages. A family health plan ensures that no person from your family misses medical insurance coverage. It also proves to be more budget-friendly when it comes to paying the insurance premium in comparison to paying premiums for separate individual health plans. Moreover, when all your family members are covered under the same plan, you are not compromising on the quality of healthcare purchased for any member of your family.

How To Buy Health Insurance Online

Most insurance providers offer online platforms to buy a family health insurance plan. You can apply for an online family policy with these easy steps:

• Step 1

Choose your health insurance coverage

• Step 2

Fill the family health policy form online submitting the details of you and your family members along with the respective medical history

• Step 3

Get your family insurance request assessed by the insurance executive

• Step 4

Complete the premium payment on the selected insurance plan to activate the family health policy

Alternatively, you can also download the insurance app by Bajaj Markets to buy your health policy at the tap of a button.

Health Insurance Calculator

For better financial planning, it is important to calculate the premium you would be paying on your health policy, especially if it would be offering health coverage for your entire family. To help make these calculations simple, many insurance providers provide the facility of online health insurance calculators.

An insurance calculator can help in better planning your finances. You can estimate the approximate premium to be paid on your family health plan, based on the desired coverage and sum insured amount.

Steps to Use an Online Health Insurance Calculator

• Step 1

Select the family health policy from the different types of health policy options available on Bajaj Markets.

• Step 2

Enter details such as the number of family members to be covered under the insurance plan, family history of any disease, expected cover, the sum insured amount and other relevant details.

• Step 3

Click ‘enter’ to submit these details and get a quote on the premium amount for your family health insurance plan.

Health Insurance Plans Available at Bajaj Markets