What to Keep in Mind When Renewing Your Mediclaim Policy?

Health insurance is a form of secondary medical insurance, which covers medical expenses of any person or family, including people in the occupation of professionals such as nurses, doctors, and pharmacists. But unlike other medical insurance policies, health insurance covers the entire family irrespective of the medical profession of the primary person, in the event of the person falling sick. Since health insurance pays a lump sum to the primary user at the time of treatment, it allows a user to recover treatment costs out of pocket in case of an unfortunate medical accident. Furthermore, health insurance policies offer benefit cover for pre-existing diseases which can cost the primary user a lot to pay out of pocket.The process of mediclaim policy renewal needs to be done through the insurer’s website or offline through a sales representative of the insurer.

When it comes to renewing mediclaim policies online, you will need to fill out the form carefully to avoid any mistakes. This renewal form will also need your new patient’s information including the name of the health insurance company, medical premium paid, any referral or referral fee, if any, details of your primary doctor, and phone number. After filling out the form, you will need to provide your health policy number, insurer’s website address, and email address. Then you will be directed to the renewal or premium payment page.Although the renewal process is not complicated, you need to be clear about certain points when renewing your health insurance. Thus, below are some of the things that you need to keep in mind before renewing a Mediclaim policy.

• Review the renewal terms-The renewal amount of health insurance plans can vary from one insurer to another. The amount is usually raised by the insurer when the current premium is paid at the end of every policy year. There is an upper limit to the renewal amount. In the current scenario, the health insurance premium is largely governed by the companies’ government and industry bodies. Generally, it increases with the increase in inflation. If you plan to increase your premium for a term of more than one year, consult with the insurer to understand their plans. Enquire about the discounts. As there is an upper limit to the renewal amount, a lot of plans have a discount offered on the renewal of the policy. Depending on the situation, you may get a discount for the premium that you paid in the earlier term.

• Review insurance needs-Although health insurance has the advantage of covering multiple needs, it should be noted that it does not cover pre-existing diseases and various chronic diseases. It is advisable to discuss with your doctor whether health insurance is suitable for you. Choose your plan wisely. The process of re-enrollment in your health insurance plan requires you to submit all the necessary documents. With the key details about your income and the medical history of your family members (children, spouse, and parents) already available to the insurer, you don’t need to re-enroll yourself for the renewal of your health insurance. Choose the right kind of plan. Many policyholders forget that they need to choose the right kind of health insurance plan.

• Add critical illness cover-In case of a serious illness like cancer or diabetes, health insurance policies come handy. Such a health insurance policy has a special critical illness rider to pay for hospitalization and medication expenses if the customer has opted for this critical illness cover. According to a report by the health insurance comparison site India Health Insurance, 14% of health insurance policies don’t have a critical illness rider and 23% have a health sub-limit of $1500 to $3000. If the customer chooses to purchase a critical illness rider, then he or she has to pay an extra premium of 10-20%. However, if a critical illness occurs due to a pre-existing condition, then the customer will be covered under the same policy for free of cost.

• Consider the option of portability-Many online insurers allow you to port your policy, which means you can go back to your previous insurer to avail of its benefits even after switching to a different insurer. One common misconception is that health insurance is not valid once your insurance policy expires. If you are happy with your existing health insurance company, you can renew your health insurance policy with them by paying only a small amount to the previous insurer, as the sum assured will remain the same. When renewing the policy, please bear in mind that you should use the cover specified by the insurer. Always go for a health cover that is suitable for your current health condition.

Through a proper health insurance renewal process, the claim settlement process of the policyholder can be enhanced and the cover protected. Most importantly, the policyholder can have a smooth and hassle-free renewal experience. For online health insurance renewal, it is advisable to visit Care Health Insurance. They will help you through the renewal process and suggest you the best policy.