NEW DELHI: Are you among the many fortunate ones to be lined beneath a authorities healthcare or insurance coverage scheme? If not, the uncertainty of being with out well being cowl or having to pay a better premium than final 12 months for you and your loved ones’s medical health insurance cowl have to be a frightening activity. The authorities’s promise of “Universal Healthcare for All” by 2030 is a much-awaited dream for all who routinely dip into their savings to pay for medical/accident insurance, but remain worried about costs that may not be covered by the insurance policy bought.
After 1000’s of posts and feedback had been obtained pertaining to sizable enhance in medical health insurance premiums by LocalCircles, it determined to conduct a nationwide survey. The survey, performed throughout August 2021 and August 2022, recorded 20,000 responses from individuals throughout 287 districts of the nation on rising medical health insurance premiums.
About 67% of respondents had been males whereas 33% had been ladies, with 47% from metros or tier 1 districts, 35% from tier 2 districts and 18% from tier 3, 4 and rural districts.
About 38% out of the almost 10,000 respondents to the query on “how a lot has your annual insurance coverage elevated within the final 12 months” said they had paid 50% or more, while 24% citizens had paid 25%-50% higher premiums and 11% had seen their health insurance premium go up by 10%-25%, another 9% paid 0%-10% higher premium. Only 28% did not have to shell out more or witnessed a dip in insurance premium or were unaware as their employer takes care of it.
From the responses to the survey, it was clear that the magnitude of the increase in premium has caught many unaware. Last year, while the percentage of respondents who experienced an increase of over 25% in health insurance premiums was 34%, this year that number jumped to 62%. Overall, an average Indian, after experiencing a 10% increase in 2021 is now experiencing an average increase of 25%. Many senior citizens with independent policies reported a much higher increase of over 50% which has squeezed their retirement finances amid rising inflation.
According to experts, health insurance premiums have increased anywhere between 10% and 25% after the pandemic, for a number of reasons, including high payouts during the last two years. In the case of senior citizens, according to policybazaar.com, “Health insurance premiums have increased by up to 100%”.
Feedback on LocalCircles’ platform means that for individuals over the age of 65 years, the premium quantity has doubled during the last two years. For instance, if the coverage premium for 2 individuals within the 2019 – 20 was ₹28,000, then it’s between ₹55,000 and ₹60,000 this 12 months.
Also, in 2019 September, IRDAI had launched standardisation of the exclusions beneath insurance coverage cowl. According to this, insurance coverage suppliers can’t exclude some ailments from a coverage. IRDAI has additionally made it obligatory for corporations to present protection for some of the fashionable strategies of therapy.
To summarise, each three in 5 Indians have skilled a rise of over 25% in medical health insurance premiums in 2022 after a large enhance in 2021, with 38% witnessing an almost 50% rise of their premiums.
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