It becomes more critical to get a health insurance as you grow old. But old-age must not be the sole reason to get health insurance.
A health insurance will come into handy whenever you are met with any unforeseen accidents or ailments. There are different ways in which you can get yourself protected under health insurance, primary among them being a Group Health Insurance policy and an individual health insurance policy. You can buy health insurance online or through offline modes.
What is a group health insurance policy?
Under a group health insurance policy, a group of people will be covered, mostly from the same company. This type of insurance policy is bought by an employer for its employees.
This is more of a generic employer oriented policy which is intended to provide the employee with a sense of security. Even though the premium is low, the policy would only cover general issues such as hospitalisation, surgery charges, accidental and illness treatment costs etc. The coverage is fixed and will not be aligned to each individual’s need. You lose this coverage once when you cease to be the employee of the organisation.
What is an individual health insurance policy?
An Individual health insurance policy covers hospitalisation charges, surgery costs, treatment costs etc. of the individual. This policy also has the benefit of adding your spouse, kids and parents into this policy. Each individual added will be covered by a separate sum insured.
An individual health insurance policy is coverage oriented. Apart from hospitalisation, accidental/ illness treatment costs etc. you can also customise it according to your own needs to provide a more flexible coverage and increased sum insured options. You can opt for the lifetime coverage as long as you pay the premium on time. You will also be eligible for Cumulative Bonus for the years you have stayed healthy and refrained from claiming any insurance.
Why you should opt for an individual health insurance policy and not depend on a group health insurance policy?
| Individual health insurance policy | Group Health Insurance policy |
| The policy will be valid as long as you keep paying the premium. It is not dependent on any other factors. | The policy is only valid as long as you are an employer at the organisation. When your tenure at the organisation is over, you will no longer be covered. |
| You can compare the plans and choose the insurance company. | Your employer will choose the insurance company for you. |
| You can customise the plan with add-ons. Thus you can choose the right plan and add components as per your requirement. | You have no option to customise. |
| Cumulative Bonus from not making any claims can be availed through this policy. | You will not be eligible for Cumulative Bonus. |
| It is always better to depend on an individual health insurance policy from the beginning. | If you solely depend on group health insurance, once post-retirement you will no longer be covered. In old age, the premium for buying new individual health insurance will be higher due to higher risks at old age. |
Even though the premium for a group health insurance might be lesser than an individual health insurance policy, the aforementioned points must be kept in mind before choosing one.
An individual policy will offer you better coverage that is suited for you rather than a generic plan. This will help you better in the long run so that you can cover yourself for the issues you have and you will not be denied your claim because of it.
About Arya T N
Hello! I am, Arya, a content writer with a penchant for transforming boring and difficult subjects into enjoyable content in layman’s terms. Drop me an e-mail at arya.neelan@gmail.com if you are struggling with your jargon-filled write-ups.
