Most employers provide family or group health insurance to their employees. This insurance policy typically covers the employee, his/her spouse and their children. But Indian family dynamics are different where parents play a very important role. Many organizations allow you to add your parents, in addition to your spouse and children in your family health insurance policy.
However, you can avail this facility by paying an additional premium amount. Despite having to pay the additional premium, there are several benefits of opting for a group health insurance plans for your parents. They are as under:
There is no need for medical check-up:
If you purchase a regular policy for your aged parents, they have to mandatorily go through a medical check-up, basis which the insurance premiums are decided. However, when you choose a family or a group health insurance policy, neither of the insured parties, including your spouse or your parents, have to undertake a pre-medical check-up.
There is no waiting period:
One of the greatest benefits of purchasing a group health insurance policy is that the coverage for all illnesses is provided right from the time the policy begins. While this may not make much difference to you and your children, it is certainly beneficial for parents as illnesses in old age are unpredictable and can creep up at any time. The zero-waiting period is also applicable for maternity coverage for your spouse, which makes it all the more beneficial.
It covers your pre-existing medical conditions:
Not only does the group health insurance policy come with a zero waiting period; it also covers any pre-existing medical conditions that any of the insured parties may have. This means that all previous illnesses are also covered under the policy from the first day. This is especially ideal for employees whose parents are suffering from any previous diseases, because they can undergo treatment for those diseases right away.
There is an additional super-top up feature:
While the sum assured for a group health insurance policy is not very high, the policy does come with a super-top up feature. This means that you can avail additional benefits and increase your assurance sums simply by paying a little extra on the policy provided by the employer. This way when the claim amount exceeds the sum assured the top-up benefit kicks in and you are provided with an additional claim amount.
The premiums are cheaper:
Purchasing individual insurance, especially for aged people is quite expensive. Such policies typically cost 30%-40% more and the coverage does not kick in until the waiting period is over. Instead of spending huge sums on individual policies for your parents, it makes more economical sense to include your parents in your employers’ group health insurance policy as it allows you to save money. Even if your parents already have their own individual insurance, a second policy comes in handy.
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