Do you need to opt for every add-on or rider offered under a health insurance policy? 🧐
Definitely not!
Adding every rider to your health insurance policy just because it is safe will be very expensive. Hence, it is wiser to assess the insured individual’s existing medical conditions, family’s medical history, lifestyle, etc., to decide which add-ons would be suitable for such an individual before opting for them.
Here are the types of Add-ons or riders in health insurance policies you can choose from:
1. Room Rent Waiver
In a standard health insurance policy, hospital room rents are capped to a certain limit. When you include a room rent waiver add-on to such health insurance policies, it either increases that limit, or no-limit is imposed.
In the case of no cap, room rent is allowed to the extent of the sum insured. It is a crucial health insurance rider if you are hospitalised in a metropolitan city, where hospital room rents are considerably higher.
Let's understand with an example how room rent waiver add-on cover works:
Consider your standard health insurance policy caps the room rent limit at Rs. 1500 per night. You find it inadequate to meet room rent expenses in hospitals where you would prefer to be admitted. Hence, you take the room rent waiver add-on and increase such sub-limit to Rs. 4000 per night.
2. Maternity Cover
With a maternity cover, you receive coverage for all expenses related to pregnancy and childbirth. Some insurance companies also provide coverage for the child’s expenses either up to the policy’s maturity period or up to 3 months from the child’s birth under maternity cover.
Additionally, depending on your policy, the cover also compensates for expenses arising out of fertility issues and the newborn baby’s hospitalization charges due to any medical complications and vaccination charges, up to 90 days from the date of delivery.
3. Daily Hospital Cash Cover
Under this health insurance rider, you are provided with daily cash allowance by the insurer for the period during which you are hospitalised. The insured individual must be hospitalised for more than 24 hours or 1 day to receive the allowance.
It is provided to compensate for the loss of pay during hospitalisation and can be utilised to meet necessary expenses like that of conveyance, food, etc.
4. Critical Illness Cover
Under this add-on, insurance companies provide a lump-sum amount to the insured when diagnosed with any critical illness, irrespective of the cumulative treatment expenses.
Suppose, you have availed a health insurance policy with a sum insured of Rs. 5 lakh. You also decide to avail a critical illness cover add-on which offers a sum assured up to Rs. 15 lakh.
In case you are diagnosed with cancer and you raise a claim with the insurance company, it will immediately pay out a lump sum of Rs. 15 lakh even though your total treatment costs stand at Rs. 9.5 lakh.
5. Personal Accident Cover
This add-on provides financial coverage on account of accidental damages suffered by the insured individual. It includes partial disability, permanent disability, death, etc.
In case of death, due to an accident, the insured individual’s family receives a lump-sum amount under this add-on.
6. Zone Upgrade Cover
With a zone upgrade, you can avail higher financial coverage for treatments at different city zones. Zones are classified as per the city’s medical expenses. The higher the medical expense in a particular region, the higher it is placed in such classification.
This add-on allows you to account for the disparity in treatment costs across different regions or zones with a slightly higher premium. But subsequently allows you to save on your total premium by 10%-20%.
