The Coronavirus pandemic had shown signs of abating and made the entire country and the administration complacent in its wake. By early 2021, most of India had cautiously opened for business and recreation, and people began to drop their guard as the days passed. Weddings and parties came back into our lives, and it looked like the worst was behind us.
But the worst was to come, and with a vengeance. The second wave of the pandemic is a relentless killer, and it has made all of us rethink our priorities. If you are worried anew about being able to battle the illness if it strikes you or a family member, then you need to take the steps outlined in this article.
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Buying Coronavirus-Specific Health Plans Is a Good Option
In the absence of adequate oxygen and ventilator beds, scores of people in immediate need of treatment are suffering tremendously all over the country. However, there are many who are fortunate enough to get beds and timely treatment – but have to pay all the associated expense out of pocket. The costs of treating the Coronavirus in private hospitals are quite prohibitive. There are also medicine and treatment costs in civic and Government hospitals, though these are largely subsidized.
Are you worried that you or a family member – or both – might contract Coronavirus and pay the high costs of treatment out of your own resources? Your savings might be fully spent in doing so, and there will still be a shortfall. However, this is not the time to panic but to buy protection for yourself and your family in the form of a Coronavirus health insurance policy, such as the Corona Kavach plan. It is a COVID 19-only health plan that offers coverage to both individuals and families against the treatment costs of the disease, with a maximum sum assured of Rs 5,00,000.
Since the premiums of the Corona Kavach plan are quite low (not exceeding Rs 3,000 based on the insurance provider you buy the plan from) you can consider buying individual plans to cover each family member. If you don’t want the hassle of managing individual plans, then you can buy the family floater option ingrained in the plan.
Buying a Comprehensive Health Insurance Plan Helps
We’re hoping you already have a comprehensive health insurance policy that you have bought previously, and that it has beneficial riders that can help you and your family members against the costs of future hospitalization. Treatment costs are quite high in India, and there are several out-of-pocket expenses that are initially not accounted for with hospitalization. Add surgery, doctor’s consultation, daily medication and post-operative treatment to the mix, and you have a large bill on your hands that you might struggle to pay – but not if you have health insurance.
Comprehensive health insurance plans pay for a range of costs associated with illness and its treatment, with additional riders like critical illness coverage taking care of the high costs of treating serious illnesses like cancer and end stage heart disease, among others. The best health plans also offer accident injury/demise insurance, which helps the insured’s family members in case of the policy holder’s income stopping due to accident-induced disability or unfortunate demise.
If you haven’t already bought a good health plan covering a range of situations, we urge you to do so now. Buying such a plan with a high coverage amount can help you and your loved ones stay protected from financial upheaval in the future, and also get access to timely treatment – you don’t need to defer treatment owing to paucity of funds, because the health plan is there to support your needs.
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Buying a Term Plan Is a Great Idea
There are those that do not wish to buy an expensive health plan, but would still like adequate coverage in case the unthinkable happens. They wish to keep their families protected from the risks of losing their income when the breadwinner of the family passes away. The costs of running the household and paying children’s education and wedding expenses are considerable, and these can become difficult to face without an active income.
This is where a term plan comes in. You can consider buying a term insurance plan for a low premium amount but a high sum assured, to safeguard your family in your absence. Do note that the plan does not have a maturity benefit, i.e. you will not receive any of your paid premiums in case you outlive the plan tenure.
However, the plan pay-out is considerably large (in the range of Rs 1 crore or more) which can take care of family household expenses, children’s education, children’s wedding, emergency medical costs, spousal support, unpaid debt, urgent house renovation, etc. Your family can continue with its current standard of living without having to depend on any other sources of income, at least for a while.
We recommend taking a term plan and a Corona Rakshak policy as an additional cover, in case you contract Coronavirus in the near future. The plan can be purchased any time up to September 30, 2021 and becomes a good back-up plan that covers hospitalization costs upon diagnosis of the virus.
Monitor all symptoms with written records and the right tools to avail insurance benefits
Though leading insurance providers are on hand to settle Corona policy claims quickly, you should also do your bit to ease the filing and claims process.
• Keep all doctor and hospital bills in a single file so that it is easier to take copies when needed.
• Record oxygen level readings every three hours if you are quarantined at home or taking treatment in the hospital. This will help the doctor treating you. You may even append these readings with your claim application.
• Make copies in triplicate of all test results, diagnostic tests and scans to submit whenever needed.
• You must also have copies of your COVID vaccine certificates if you have already taken them (either one or both doses).
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