Difference between Basic and Best Health Insurance Plan

Penny-wise, pound foolish is certainly not the way to go when you think of health cover. In for a penny, in for a pound is more like it if you want full benefits of health insurance.

Insurance, especially health insurance is a must these days given the high cost of diagnosis, treatments and hospitalization. It becomes even more critical with advancing years. What happens if you are without any sort of cover? If an elderly member or a younger family member needs hospitalization you are left with a huge hole in your pocket. So you opt for cover but then there are various types of insurance.

Group insurance

Employers, at least the better ones, routinely cover employs with a basic health insurance policy. If you think this is adequate you are mistaken. Companies opt for bare bones plans instead of choosing the best health insurance because the more benefits there are, the higher the premium. When it comes to the crunch you will find that group insurance is far from adequate.

Mediclaim

Many people think that mediclaim is the best health insurance because it covers hospitalization and treatment for accidents and some pre-specified illnesses for a certain amount. Premium varies according to the assurance amount. You can claim tax benefit under section 80D. Mediclaim is good but it is certainly not the best health insurance you can opt for given the features and benefits of full-fledged health insurance now available from various companies.

Health Insurance

IF you want the best health insurance then there are varied plans available from various companies online as well as offline. Whereas basic health insurance may cover only treatment and hospitalization and that too in a limited fashion, comprehensive critical illness cover including about 30 illnesses is a feature of this type of cover. There is no upper limit with premiums being in proportion to sum assured with discounts offered as you opt for higher coverage. You can increase or decrease sum assured and the term. Where mediclaim may not offer any benefit in certain conditions, comprehensive best insurance covers give benefit, even if it is not 100% since co-pay is always a feature of such plans despite cashless hospitalization plans.

You can, for instance, opt for a family floater plan of a higher value. Should any member of the family fall ill or need hospitalization you get full benefits up to the maximum value. The best health insurance even includes critical illness and compensation. Bharti Axa, for example, offers lump sum compensation of maximum sum assured in the event of critical illness and the insured is also entitled to receive double the sum insured, which means hospitalization benefit fo Rs. 3 lakhs (if that is the sum assured) and additional lump sum payment of Rs 3 lakhs, which can be used to cover other medical bills or for maintenance of the family. This is certainly not something you get when you opt for basic insurance cover.

This article is written by Moupee Deb Roy, content writer for Turtlemint.com. She is a content enthusiast and is determined to encourage people to be informed, compare and buy the best health insurance.