health insurance get more

If you have been running from pillar to post to make your health insurance claims, you must be heaving a sigh of relief. The new health insurance regulations, effective from October this year, have made it easier for policyholders to claim for expenses which arise from hospitalisation or treatment.
To top it, insurance companies are going out of the way to make the claims process simple and easy for individuals with minimum documentation and a quicker turn-around time. Till now, individuals who held multiple health insurance policies had to make multiple claims with all the health insurance companies they had taken policies from.
Here the claims process would take months as individuals were expected to file multiple claims from several insurers.
The new health insurance regulations, effective from this October, and the abolition of contribution clause that dealt with claims under multiple policies, have made life simpler for health insurance customers.
Policyholders will benefit from fewer delays in claim settlement and less paperwork.
Earlier, those with multiple policies were required to approach both (or all) insurers and the insurance companies used to settle claim in the ratio of the sum assured from different health insurance companies.
In other words, the amount spent on medical expenses had to be recovered from various insurance companies in proportion to the insurance covers taken.
For instance, you have two policies from insurers A and B, with sums insured of Rs 100,000 each.
Now, say you make a claim of Rs 100,000, then in such a case both the insurers A and B will have to shell out Rs 50,000 each.
Insurers will have to shell out equal claims because the policyholder had the same amount of cover taken from both the insurers. However, here the policyholder had to go through the same paperwork twice, apart from going through the hassle of approaching multiple insurers. Now, with changed rules, an individual can just approach one insurance firm.
Hence, in this case, the policyholder can claim the entire amount of Rs 100,000 from insurer A, while the existing policy taken from insurer B will continue to remain in operation or active.In other words, a policyholder's trackrecord of ‘no-claims’ from insurer B will continue as before.
When an individual doesn’t make any claims in a given year, he gets the status of no-claim bonus. As one retains the ‘no-claim bonus’ on a policy that is not used, it enhances the health cover at no extra cost.
That means insurers cannot insist that the claim burden be divided as long as the amount does not exceed the sum insured. If the claim amount is higher than the cover under one policy, then the policyholder has the right to exhaust the limit and make a claim for the balance from the other insurer.
For instance, in the above case if the insurance amount is Rs 150,000, then the policyholder has the option of approaching insurer A with a Rs 100,000-claim and insurer B with the remaining Rs 50,000 claim.
This will also help those who have an individual cover plus group cover from the employer.The process of claims would be similar as both the policies would be treated as independent policies irrespective of whether it is group or retail.
The contribution clause will not be applicable if you have a regular health cover and a fixed benefit cover. Reason: The regular health covers promise to reimburse expenses incurred by you, while the fixed benefit covers that are usually sold by life insurers hand out a fixed sum when you make a claim.
While the new regulations have eased concerns on this front by nearly eliminating the contribution clause, you may still have to go through making multiple claims if your claim amount exceeds the sum assured from one insurer.
Make strategic claims
Individuals can draw up better strategies on their health insurance covers now. For instance, individuals can buy new plans with special covers and greater benefits depending on one's age and keeping in mind the ailments that are not covered.
At the same time, it can also help in protecting and keeping older health policies active, where an individual has already developed track record of ‘no-claims’. This will help make good use of the ‘no-claim’ bonus.
When the policyholder makes no claim in a particular year, policyholders can enhance their covers with a no-claim bonus at no extra cost. Individuals can safeguard a long built trackrecord in such cases while utilising the new health insurance plans to make claims.
Do take into consideration the ease of making claims.
For instance, cash-less hospitalisation plans might be better used in some situations as against a regular policy in case of others. Individuals can segregate their insurance policies based on number of years they have been in vogue, on specific ailments covered, and on the no-claims bonuses accumulated.
This will also help in judiciously utilising the health insurance policy that gives the maximum benefits when you make a claim, at the same time it will help keep your benefits in other plans intact. Some policies cover certain ailments better with higher benefits.
A short self-note on the policies that can during certain situations go a long way in maximising the benefits of all your health insurance policies.
At the same time, it can also help reduce the premium cost of your health insurance.
By not making multiple claims, individuals can keep some plans going for a longer time at cheaper premiums.

Insurance plans for working women in India

Women are increasingly taking up financial responsibilities of their family. And this transformation of the role indicates that they also need to be insured.
I t goes without saying that there exists gender parity in most sections of society.
From driving trucks to being CEO of multinational companies, today women are empowered and are at par if not ahead with their male counterparts on professional front.
Being an equal bread earner in the family, women today are also actively involved in all financial matters pertaining to the household.
In fact, as per a recent survey conducted by Nielsen across a few cities in India,  over 23 per cent of the working women have now begun to take their own financial decisions.
This consolidates the fact that women today are striving hard to become financially reliant. An important part of financial planning for a woman includes insurance. However, statistics shows, that in India, men score over women in purchasing insurance policies. Insurance is an all-pervasive need and it is equally important for women to get insured like their male counterparts.
The most important reason for working woman to buy life insurance policy is that she is also managing domestic financial responsibilities at the same time.
If you are a single and working woman, it is very important for you to own life insurance policy because you have ageing parents or any other dependents.
As more women are taking up more responsibilities toward contributing towards the family income, the risk of a loss of income in case of an eventuality increases. Having a life cover under such circumstances can prove to be helpful.
Many insurance companies offer women specific plans these days in order to cater to this segment of the market.
Women are equally prone to health risks at various stages of their lives
A woman must opt for these special plans as they provide comprehensive coverage and further saves them from any financial impact in times of crisis.
These products are aimed and positioned as instrument for women to help meet their financial goals. Furthermore, soaring medical costs can prove lethal as it may consume your savings and entire earnings.
Hence, it makes sense for a woman to buy special insurance plans covering entire risks.
Below are some of the types of insurance available and meant especially for women.
Life insurance plans: Term life insurance is a risk cover on the life of an individual. These are pretty standard in nature where the risk cover commonly known as ‘sum assured’ is pre determined amount of money which is paid to the designated nominee on demise of  the life assured. 
Term life insurance can be bought by paying stipulated amount annually. The cover lasts till the end of policy period which could be as long as 35 years.  Term life insurance is the cheapest among life insurance policies. These are bought with the intention to secure your family and safeguard againsts one’s liabilities.
Buying life insurance has tax benefits. It is advised to buy life insurance in early stages of life.
Health insurance plans: Health is of prime importance to every individual. Including women. Most women health insurance plans cover complications during pregnancy and other congenital disabilities too.  Moreover, a few health insurance policies meant for women, provide cover to new born babies with any congenital disease. There are several women specific critical illness plans which cover illnesses specific to women such as breast cancer, cervical cancer and fallopian tube cancer.
Most of the insurance provides three year premium holiday for women along with monetary benefits.
Travel insurance plans: This category ensures safety and risk free travel to an individual. Most of the comprehensive travel insurance plans provide medical cover, trip cancellation and trip delay coverage including baggage lost as well. Women specific travel insurance plans are cheaper than travel insurance plans for men.
Motor insurance plans: Many general insurance companies offer motor insurance plans for women as well. As women are considered safe drivers than men, these insurance companies provide motor insurance plans at cheaper rates than what they offer to men.
Furthermore, coverage provided is extensive for women as well.
Women specific plans indeed provide extra benefits but one must not forget to do a realty check on them.
The decision to buy health insurance coverage must be based upon age, number of dependents you are supporting along with consideration of cost of medical care in the city you live. While choosing an insurance company, one must perform thorough research.Online general health insurance policies are much cheaper than policies offered offline.Moreover, insurance aggregators provide comparison tools to compare these policies online.
Comparison of health insurance policies, travel and motor insurance policies enables a woman to buy the policy that provides maximum coverage to them within their budgets.