Under this blog, we will discuss
- Advantages of Corporate Group Health Insurance
- Disadvantages of Corporate Group Health Insurance
What is Corporate Health Insurance or Group Health Insurance?
A Corporate or Group Health insurance is a health protection plan that is given by the company to its employees. Health insurance is the most important thing because it provides you financial support when you are hospitalized. The companies who opt this option for their employees are really concerned about their employees. The premium is paid by the company in most cases.
What is Individual Health Insurance?
Individual health insurance is a health policy which is taken by the person for himself, family or his/her parents. The premium is paid by the individual.
Advantages of Corporate Health insurance or Group Health Insurance
- No or Nominal Premium Paid by the employee of the company.
- Some policies cover parents of the employees also.
- Some policies provide cashless feature also.
- An employee is getting free health support from the company.
- Low cost of Premium
Disadvantages of Corporate Health insurance or Group Health Insurance
- No Claim Bonus – when you have not taken any claim in the year, Health Insurance Company provide a no claim bonus when is added to your Sum Insured or gives you discount on premium. In Group Health Insurance you did not get this feature.
- Recharge – In case of Private policy, Insured gets additional sum insured which is not available in corporate policy. Also, the sum insured is decided by the company.
- Restoration – Feature of restoration is not available in corporate policy. Under this feature Sum insured is restored again after it is exhausted at no extra cost.
- Daily Cash – Individual health policies provide daily cash option when a person is hospitalized.
- Day Care – Mostly corporate policies don’t provide the feature of daycare. Like claim for operations that requires hospitalization of fewer than 24 hours.
- Pre Hospitalisation Expenses and Post Hospitalisation Expenses – Mostly Group policies provide claim only for hospital expenses. Not the before and after hospital expenses.
- Life Long Renewal – When you get to retire, the group health policy is over. It does not provide lifelong renewal, so at the age of 60-65yrs, you are with no health policy.
- Domiciliary – Corporate policies don’t provide the feature of domiciliary. Under this feature, a person can get a claim when he is not able to get admitted in hospital due to some reason.
- Health check-up – In claim free year, Individual Company provides free health check-up.
- Capping – There are different times of capping available in group health policy. These are different in each company. Some of the common cappings include Room Rent Capping, ICU Capping, Parents Claim Ratio Capping and more. It means you will get a fixed percentage of it during hospitalization. The rest amount you have to pay from your pocket.
If you are using a Corporate Health Insurance Policy or a Group Health Insurance Policy then you will get basic health coverage when you are hospitalized. In this way, you will save a lot on hospitalization expenses. Because when a person is hospitalized, all the saving are used in paying hospital expenses. During hospitalization, you have the pressure of hospital bills. Luckily if your group health insurance policy will give relief but to an extent. Because of the corporate health policy designed by the company. It provides you basic features like a cashless option. Coverage of hospital up to a Sum Insured finalized by them.
When you are a part of corporate, you a protected, but there are few negative cases also.
Case 1 – When you switch a job for a particular duration you are not covered. When you leave a job at a young age to find a new job, there is a time of a few months when you are in notice period or jobless. At that time there is no health policy with you.
Case 2 – You switch a company and your new company don’t provide health insurance. In such a situation you need an individual policy. The situation comes worst when you are suffering from an illness, then you have to wait for 3 – 4yr to get coverage for a particular disease in your health policy. There are few clauses in individual policy like after 4 years old illness are covered and there are few diseases which required a waiting period of 2 years.
Case 3 – After you get retirement, practically you must be suffering from some diseases like BP, Sugar at that age. That time you plan for a private health insurance policy. That will be really hard. You have to face high premium, 24 months and 48 months waiting clause and it is possible that the company won’t accept your case. For sure, your old company will not provide your life long health insurance policy renewal.
So, what should you choose?
Now, there are 2 affordable options available for you.
- Buy an individual Health Plan which will give you peace of mind along with many benefits and lifelong renewal.
- Buy an Add on plan. The Add on plan will provide financial support when you need. Like your company provide Sum Insured of 3 Lakhs. The Add on policy will cover after the expenses of 3 Lakhs up to 25 Lakhs (as per your choice). You can convert the Add on plan to your primary policy after a particular time span and it will cover your all exiting decreases from day 1. There will be no waiting period. The premium of such plans starts from 185 per month only.
Example
Ramesh, a young guy started his career at 25 years. He worked in a company which provides health insurance with a cover of 3 lakhs. Like all others, he was not thinking about health protection in this age and he was relaxed that he has a cover of 3 lakhs. He got hospitalized due to dengue. His corporate policy provides him a 100% claim. Total expense was of 1.5 Lakh. He was happy. He just paid the medical expenses the doctor told him after discharge.
A few days later he met with an accident and got hospitalized. The doctors planned a surgery of 2 Lakhs and other expenses like room and other the total cost was 2.5 lakh. The company gave claim of the balance amount of Rs. 1.5 Lakh and rest his parents have to arrange. They break there FDs and future savings and gave 1 lakh out of it.
Now, if Ramesh has opted for a health plan of Rs. 185 / Month which covers his expenses of up to. 8 Lakh and the expenses of Post Hospitalisation also i.e. Tests, Doctor Visits and medicines. You can contact Health Insurance Consultant at +91-7838904326. His parents would not have to pay from their future savings.
Conclusion
A health protection plan is never a waste of money. It is not possible that you will never get ill. Just by paying a small amount on the health insurance plan, you get cover of lakhs. Health issues and hospital expenses are increasing day by day. You have to plan in advance when you are fit to avoid waiting periods and other clauses.