How much health insurance should I have?

A health insurance policy can assist in covering necessary medical expenses, including those associated with non-hospitalization medical care, planned hospitalization, and medical crises. Your coverage for medical expenses should be comprehensive enough to provide you with the peace of mind that comes with sufficient financial security.

Selecting the right insurance plan

Before choosing the best health insurance, it is essential to consider various aspects. It must include one's present state of health, the life stage, the city in which one dwells, their family medical history, the kind of work one does, and how much coverage one can afford. When selecting health insurance policies, it is essential to remember that comparing premiums is only one of the appropriate criteria for evaluation.

How much minimum coverage must an individual have for health insurance?

A person interested in purchasing a health insurance policy in the early stages of life should always opt for health coverage greater than three lakhs. If they suffer from a disease, it will be easier for them to obtain the necessary coverage to deal with the associated costs. You also have a lower likelihood of filing a claim. At the same time, you are younger, which means you are more likely to be eligible for a no-claims bonus or cumulative bonus, both of which indicate that your Sum insured will increase year after year, potentially up to 200 percent.

How much minimum coverage must an individual have for health insurance for a family?

A minimum sum assured of five hundred thousand rupees is required for a household from the middle class. One can purchase a floater health insurance policy, and if they include their parents in the coverage, the insured value can be increased to 7.5 lakh rupees. In addition, one can purchase a "top-up" plan, which becomes active when the initial Sum guaranteed has been depleted. Another option to consider is purchasing a critical illness insurance policy, which will pay the policyholder a lump sum regardless of the total cost of treatment.

Insurance coverage for older adults or parents

When choosing the amount of coverage, you need to be as practical as possible. In today's world, even a minor operation routinely costs up to Rs 100,000. The cost of bypass surgery at a reputable institution currently exceeds 2 lakh, and it is almost inevitable that this number will rise within the next five years. Even if the Sum Insured you have now seems to be enough to cover your future medical costs, that may be different in the next few years. Before settling on the amount to be insured, it is recommended that one take into account the effects of inflation. Additionally, if your parents are older citizens, they will unquestionably want a more significant sum insured, and their premiums will also be higher because of their advanced years.

A health insurance plan with an amount insured of Rs10 lakh should be sufficient for a family consisting of two adults and two children who live in a metropolitan area and who have access to features such as restore and multiplier.

Wrapping Up

Even if there is no such thing as an optimum sum promised for the best health insurance policy for a person, there are two guidelines on its quantum that are widely accepted in the market. Initially, your health insurance premiums should equal at least fifty percent of your annual salary. And second, the health insurance policies should, at the very least, pay for the expense of a coronary artery bypass graft performed at your chosen hospital. Most experts on personal finance advise purchasing health insurance with a minimum coverage amount of Rs. 5 lakh.