Health Insurance

Individual health insurance provides separate coverage for each insured person with individual sum insured amounts. Family floater health insurance, on the other hand, covers multiple family members under a single policy with a shared sum insured. Family floater plans are generally more cost-effective for young families, while individual plans may be better for families with elderly members or those with pre-existing conditions.

A cashless claim is a facility where you can get treatment at a network hospital without paying hospital bills upfront. The insurance company settles the bill directly with the hospital. To avail this facility, you need to inform the insurance company before planned hospitalization or within 24 hours of emergency hospitalization, and present your health insurance card at the hospital's insurance desk.

Under Section 80D of the Income Tax Act, you can claim tax deductions on health insurance premiums. For individuals below 60 years, the deduction limit is ₹25,000 for self, spouse, and dependent children. An additional deduction of ₹25,000 is available for parents below 60 years, which increases to ₹50,000 if parents are senior citizens (above 60 years). If both you and your parents are senior citizens, the maximum deduction can go up to ₹1,00,000.

A pre-existing disease is any condition, ailment, injury, or disease that is diagnosed by a physician within 48 months prior to the issuance of the health insurance policy. Most health insurance policies have a waiting period of 2-4 years for pre-existing diseases, during which claims related to these conditions are not covered. It's important to disclose all pre-existing conditions when purchasing a policy to avoid claim rejection later.