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Health Insurance Policy is not overrated but the cost of treatment is. Do you agree or not? If not then after you read this, you will realize how relevant it is to buy a Health Insurance Policy. It dates back some 10 years ago. Prateek completed his post-graduation in the year 2007. It was the year when the recession hit India. But Prateek had his luck and he was placed with an MNC. As soon as he joined, he was offered coverage under the Group Health Insurance Policy offered by the company.
Compare Group Health Insurance Vs Individual Health Insurance
The year 2009, Prateek resigned from his current job in March. In the month of June 2009, he suffered from some infection and was hospitalized for the treatment. Prateek recovered from the illness but the medical bills gave him a lot of stress. Can you think of it why? Here are some reasons which may be floating in your mind by now.
- The hospital could have charged him too much on the account of the increased cost of treatment and better services.
- Prateek’s Group Health Policy could not pay for his bill.
- Prateek had no Individual health insurance coverage.
To your surprise only point 1 and point 3 makes some sense. Every year there is inflation which costed the bill to be higher. Also, as soon as Prateek quit his job, the benefits of the policy ceased to end. This is the disadvantage of having a Group Health Insurance Plan.
Are you perplexed and thinking about the savior to avoid such a situation in your life? If yes, then trust me it is good that you are in a conundrum. Yes, it may sound weird but you should know the details about the types of the product and the benefits under each. A Group Health Insurance Policy has its own advantages but when you leave the job you are uncovered. Let us first see what is in store with the cover and later we will read about the difference between the two types of policies.
What is a Group Health Insurance Policy?
A Group Health Insurance Policy is the health plan that the corporate house takes for its employees. This type of policy will have no waiting period for maternity, covers employees’ parents, and also covers pre-existing diseases. The cover ends when you leave your company.
What is an Individual Health Insurance Policy?
Individual Health is what you buy for yourself or your family to cover them for any medical emergencies. Under the policy, you can make unlimited claims until the Sum Insured under the policy gets exhausted. This cover is with you till the time you pay the premium for renewals.
| Particulars | Individual Health Plan | Group Health Plan |
| Cost | Individual Health is expensive as the premium is higher. Plus you have to shell money from your monthly income. | A Group Health Plan is cheaper. The employers get discounts from insurance companies. You only pay a portion of the premium which is deducted from your salary. |
| Continuation/Applicability | The Individual Health Plan continues only if you pay a premium for it when the renewal is due. It is your asset. | A Group Health Plan will continue for you only till you are working with the company. |
| Control | Under the Individual Health Plan, you have the control of the policy to seek cover for the amount you want and when to discontinue the policy. | Under the Group Health Insurance, the control to set the cover limit and time to continue the policy is in the hands of the employer. |
| Bonus | Under this type of plan, you will earn some cumulative bonus for each claim-free year. | Whereas, in a Group Health Plan, there is no bonus that you earn on an individual basis. |
You may not feel the urge to buy an individual plan when you are young. You may also find it as an annual expense from your savings. But trust, this is an investment which will save you from huge unexpected financial cost incurred due to hospitalization.
