I have health insurance from office. Do I need another health policy?

Health insurance policy from office or employer health insurance is valid only as long as you serve in that company. Once you are out of job, you would be left without any coverage and any hospitalization during this time may cause a huge dent to your savings. Hence, it is advisable to have an individual health insurance policy even though you have health insurance from office.

Can I transfer my health insurance policy from one company to another?

Yes. The process of transferring your health insurance policy from insurance company to the other is known as Portability. You need to submit an application to the target insurance company 45 days prior to the expiry of your health insurance policy for the company to act on your policy. The process of porting requires the new health insurance company to have the similar health insurance product and all the waiting period exemptions would also be applicable with the new insurance company.

What happens if I forget to renew my health insurance policy?

Most of the insurance companies offer 15-30 days of time after the expiry of the policy to renew the policy. The grace period is the time where the coverage is not applicable but the exemptions accumulated over a period of time would be safeguarded. If the policy is not renewed during the grace period, then your health insurance policy would lapse and all the exemptions accrued over the past few years would expire. In short if the renewal is not done on time, then it is considered as a new policy and all the other conditions needs to be satisfied before the coverage kicks in.

What is the income tax relief provided by the health insurance policy?

There are certain income tax deductions available for people purchasing health insurance policies. The income tax relief is provided by the GOI to encourage more number of people buying health insurance policies. Below are the income tax exemptions available if a health insurance policy is purchased.

As mentioned above the minimum tax exemption under your health insurance policy is Rs.25k and the maximum tax exemption is Rs.60k. Further tax exemption can be availed through family health checkups.

How to buy health insurance policy?

Buying a health insurance policy is one of the most important decisions that a person has to make. The first step is to do your research. Find out what your options are and what they offer in terms of coverage and costs. You should also compare the different policies available in your area, so you can find the best one for you and your family.

For applying for health insurance online in India first go to our portal and fill in the required details after hospitalization, policy details and purchase the policy. Follow these steps before buying the health insurance policy:-

• Sum Insured
• Cumulative Bonus
• Cost of Health Check-up
• The minimum period of stay in hospital
• Pre and post hospitalization expenses
• Cashless facility