It’s 10 in the morning, you are waiting for the call from a
doctor’s lab. How about the reports? Positive or negative. You are tensed,
deeply worried and then the bell rings. You are suffering from a serious
illness. What next- you start thinking about your family, getting admitted and
start the treatment, amount of money needed and most important of all- have you
secured that much amount of money. The answer would be NO if you do not own a
health insurance. Health insurance is an insurance coverage that pays for your
medical and surgical expenses incurred. Most of the companies now a days have
made health insurance compulsory for their employees because you can never
compromise on health. There are other insurance available but health insurance
is better because the cost of premium is deductible to the payer and also the
returns you receive are tax free. Thus, this would be the most important
insurance of all. In case of sudden illness without a health insurance might
put you and your family in debt for long years.
The question comes how does it work? It is simple indeed.
You pay premium amount monthly or annually. The insurance policy contracts
hospitals, clinics and several other health care providers to give benefits to
policy holders at a discounted rate. Thus, at the time of illness, you get the
amount and best treatment possible can be done without any financial issues.
But there are certain pros and cons. The limitation is that if a person is
already suffering from illness and then he goes for a health insurance, he
might not get an insurance. The reason being that his health expenses at the
time of expiration would be high. i.e. the cost for the insurance company
increases. The moral of the story is that once you are in a job and start your
own living, own a health insurance not just for yourself but for family as
well.
There are various types of health insurance available like
family floater (spouse, kids, and parents), individual, and top up, critical
illness. These can be selected on the basis of your requirement and physical
health of the family members. The best among them is the family floater as all
members are insured and safeguarded. All you get is a good amount when in need
at comparatively low cost. Thus, you must be satisfied once you own health
insurance for your loved ones that you have secured an option in case of
emergency and mishap in future. This can save you from large debts and will
give a good financial support indeed.
The sad part is that in India a majority of the people don’t
have health insurance. They believe that they have other insurance policies
which will take care of things and also plenty of investments which will
financially support them as and when there is need. This thinking needs a
change. Health insurance by name itself signifies that it is concerned about
your health. It is not a waste of money at all. Investments are a part to save
your salary and that is why you go for investments. The purpose of that is
entirely different. Ex- president Obama of Obamacare fame also mentioned recently in a
speech about health insurance and its benefits. Our government has also come up
with such things for our welfare and well-being. Let’s make use of it before we
repent and before it is too late.
