Difference Between a Regular and Comprehensive Health Insurance Plan

After the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, people in India have become more aware of the importance of having comprehensive health insurance coverage for their families. They are more willing to purchase a policy with a high sum assured. However, most first-time health insurance buyers have one question – should they purchase a regular health insurance policy or choose a comprehensive healthcare plan.

Financial Protection

Although both regular and comprehensive health insurance offer financial protection against medical emergencies in the family, there are a few important differences between them, which are discussed below.

Policy Coverage

A standard health insurance policy provides basic coverage, and it is enough to cover the routine medical expenses like minor illnesses, room rent, diagnostic tests, doctor consultation, and other expenses if you are admitted to hospital for more than 24 hours. But it may not be very helpful if you or any of your family members are diagnosed with a serious condition like cancer or cardiac ailment.

As the name suggests, a comprehensive health insurance policy, on the other hand, offers an extensive coverage than regular policy. It provides coverage against the expenses related to routine health check-ups, critical illnesses, and recognised and unknown diseases such as COVID-19 infection.

A regular health insurance policy is the most common form of health insurance, where the insurance companies provide a standard coverage between one lakh (minimum sum assured) and five lakhs (maximum sum assured).

In contrast, comprehensive health insurance policies offer higher coverage. You can choose a plan with a higher sum assured ranging from three lakhs to two crores based on your specific requirements. If you have included your old-aged parents in your policy, if you have a family history of critical illness, it is better to buy a policy with high sum assured to get comprehensive health coverage.

Additionally, a comprehensive health insurance policy may include riders that provide additional coverage against specific risks that are not covered under a standard policy.

Choosing the right comprehensive health insurance policy

First and foremost, the policy you choose must fulfil its primary objective, i.e., provide robust coverage to secure your finances against medical emergencies. It should provide cover for medical emergencies like surgery to treat any major complications, treatment for critical illnesses, and hospitalisation due to sickness or injuries.

Secondly, the policy should allow you to customise the coverage amount to suit your specific healthcare needs. If your lifestyle or family history put you at a high risk to certain critical diseases, then you must opt for highest coverage for such ailment, instead of letting the insurer choose the coverage on your behalf.

You can choose to buy a policy like the Health Premier (KHP) that provides comprehensive health coverage to you and your family so that you never have to compromise on the quality of healthcare services you get. Let us look at the coverge offered under KHP plan:

• In-patient treatment, including medical expenses like room rent, IC charges, doctor’s fees, operation theather charges, etc.

• Day care treatment expenses for 405 day car procedures listed in the policy documents. You can also check the complete list of procedure covered under KHP on www.zurichkotak.com.

• The KHP plans also offers cumulative bonus up to 50% of the sum assured as per the terms and conditions if you don’t file for a single claim during a policy period.

• The policy also proivdes one free health check-up for each insured member (aged over 18) in a year. You can avail of this benefit regardless of any claim.

• The KHP plan covers in-patient medical expenses for AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, and Homoepahty) treatment and domiciliary hospitalisation.

Know your needs and make a smart decision

Understand your requirements and choose wisely. If you're new to insurance, seek guidance from experts or thoroughly research various plans. It's crucial to evaluate your specific needs for informed decision-making. This applies not just to health insurance but also for car insurance or bike insurance.

If you need any assistance, you can get in touch with us through email, toll free number, or online chat. At Zurich Kotak General Insurance, we are committed to help all our customers buy the best health insurance plan and get the most out of it.

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