Revised Health Insurance Rules: Individuals Above 65 Years Can Now Purchase Coverage
Health insurance is no less than the need of the hour for every individual striving hard to survive with the increasing rate of medical costs. However, a large percentage of the country’s population is still confused when it comes to understanding the technicalities of buying a healthcare policy.
To help them resolve their confusion, IRDAI has come up with new health insurance rules, which make such policies more inclusive for everyone. Scroll down to know more.
What are the New Health Insurance Rules Revised in 2024?
IRDAI or the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India has introduced a few new rules to be followed in the health insurance industry with effect from 1st April 2024. These rules have been made with the aim of helping the citizens of the country become more empowered when it comes to accessing quality medical treatment.
So let us have a look at the new set of health insurance guidelines as mandated by the IRDAI:
1. Health Insurance Plans is Applied to All Age Groups
Traditionally, health insurance companies used to offer policies with an age limit for insurers, which was earlier up to 65 years. As per the new IRDAI guidelines, there are no more such age limits and health insurance policies can be offered to people of all age groups. This point particularly benefits senior citizens, who can now buy healthcare policies whenever they want.
2. Reduced Waiting Periods on PEDs
Earlier policyholders used to face waiting periods to cover PEDs or Pre-existing diseases in their health insurance policies that went up to 4 years. Those waiting periods have now been reduced to 3 years, enabling you to claim your coverage for the medical expenses for PED.
3. Reduced Specific Disease Waiting Period
The new health insurance rules by the IRDAI have also reduced the waiting periods for specific diseases or treatments from 4 years to 3 years. This helps the policyholders to get access to critical treatments like surgeries or joint replacement operations at the earliest after they serve a maximum waiting period of 3 years.
4. People with Severe Medical Conditions can Apply
As per the new rules by IRDAI, now health insurance companies are not allowed to refuse health policies to people suffering from severe health problems like heart disease, renal failure, AIDS etc. It will help in increasing the penetration of health insurance in India and develop a more inclusive health insurance ecosystem.
5. No Sub-Limits on AYUSH Treatment
The sub-limits on accessing AYUSH treatment have also been removed by the IRDAI, enabling the policyholders to claim the expenses of medical treatments related to Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, Homeopathy, and Naturopathy up to their maximum sum insured based on their health insurance policy.
6. Customised Plans for Senior Citizens
According to the revised guidelines of the insurance regulator, health insurance companies shall design a customised healthcare plan for senior citizens, students, children, maternity and other related groups. It enables the policyholders to diversify the portfolio of their medical insurance products based on their specific healthcare needs.
7. Personalised Support for Aged People
Now the health insurance companies will also have a specialised channel to manage the claims and complaints of senior citizens. This pointer helps in creating a more tailored approach to meet the healthcare requirements of aged people, being more responsive to them and resolving their queries quicker.
8. Reduced Moratorium Period
The IRDAI has also cut down the moratorium period from 8 years to 5 years. According to this rule, health insurance companies are now prohibited from rejecting claims that are based on misinterpretation or non-disclosure of pre-existing diseases after continuous coverage for 5 years. Insurance providers are supposed to follow this rule if it is not a case of fraud.
9. No Indemnity Based Policy
As per the revised guidelines, health insurance companies are now only allowed to issue benefit-based policies. This prohibits them from issuing any policy that is indemnity-based. This rule will ensure that the policyholders can get a fixed sum whenever they are diagnosed with a covered disease.
10. Coverage from Multiple Insurers
The revised rules of health insurance as mandated by the IRDAI also allow the policyholders to opt for multiple health insurers to take advantage of the benefit-based policies. It will help you to get greater flexibility in your healthcare policy since you can get wider options to cover the medical expenses of your diagnosed diseases.
The Bottom Line
To sum it up, the changes in the guidelines of the health insurance industry target to improve the quality of life within the country. It aims to encourage more people to opt for health insurance plans suitable for their healthcare requirements. With the growing number of insurance policies being accessible to people, the country shall continue moving towards development.
To know more about various health insurance plans for senior citizens, visit the official website of ACKO and have a talk with our officials.
Disclaimer: This content is part of a marketing initiative. No TNIE Group journalists were involved in the creation of this content.