What are Add-ons in Health Insurance?

What are Add-Ons in Health Insurance?

Add-ons in health insurance give extra benefits that you can add to your main health policy. It helps increase your medical coverage without needing a separate insurance plan. You can buy add-ons along with your main health policy, but not on their own.

Some common add-ons include maternity cover, critical illness cover, personal accident cover, daily cash allowance, and home healthcare cover. These add-ons help make your health insurance stronger and better suited to your needs.

Different Types of Add-On Covers in Health Insurance

There are many add-on covers available in health insurance that provide extra benefits to policyholders. Each add-on is made for a different purpose, and you can choose the right one according to your needs. Here are some popular add-on covers:

1. Personal Accident Cover

This cover provides financial support if the insured person faces injuries, disability, or death due to an accident. It includes compensation for temporary or permanent disabilities caused by accidents.

2. Maternity Cover

This add-on helps cover pregnancy and childbirth expenses. It includes hospital charges, delivery costs, and medical care for the mother and newborn.

3. OPD Care

With this add-on, expenses for doctor consultations, diagnostic tests, and prescribed medicines are covered, even if hospitalization is not required. The policyholder needs to submit a reimbursement claim to get this benefit.

4. Air Ambulance Cover

If emergency treatment is needed in another city, this add-on covers the cost of air ambulance services, ensuring quick medical transport.

5. Hospital Cash Cover

This add-on provides a daily cash allowance for every day of hospitalization (minimum stay of 24 hours). This money can be used for extra expenses during hospital stays.

6. AYUSH Treatment Cover

This add-on covers expenses for alternative treatments like Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy (AYUSH).

7. Reduction in the PED Waiting Period

This benefit helps reduce the waiting period for pre-existing diseases (PEDs), allowing the insured to get treatment sooner.

8. Global Coverage

This add-on covers medical treatments received outside India, as long as they are done at network hospitals under the policy.

9. Critical Illness Cover

If the insured is diagnosed with a serious illness like cancer, stroke, or kidney failure, the insurance company provides a lump sum payment, regardless of the total treatment cost.

10. Unlimited Sum Recharge

If the insured uses up their sum insured, this add-on automatically restores the full coverage amount, making it available for future medical expenses. This benefit is usually applicable once per policy year.

11. Room Rent Waiver

This add-on removes or increases the hospital room rent limit, allowing policyholders to choose a better hospital room without paying extra.

12. International Second Opinion

This cover helps policyholders seek expert medical advice from international doctors, covering the consultation expenses.

13. Zone Upgrade

This benefit provides extra financial support if the insured is receiving treatment in a different zone (for example, moving from a small city to a metro city for better healthcare).

Benefits of Add-On Covers in Health Insurance

Here are some simple benefits of adding extra coverage to your health insurance:

1. More Coverage

Health insurance add-on helps increase the benefits of your main policy. You can add specific medical coverage based on your needs, making your insurance more useful.

2. Saves Money

Buying an add-on is cheaper than buying a new health policy. Insurance companies cannot charge more than 30% of your main policy’s price for add-ons. For example, if your policy costs ?12,000 per year, the add-on cannot cost more than ?3,600.

3. No Need for Another Policy

With add-ons, you don’t have to buy a new insurance plan for extra coverage. This helps you save money and avoid extra paperwork.

4. Custom Coverage

Health insurance premiums can be different for everyone. Some factors affecting how much you pay for health insurance are discussed below:

Things to Check Before Buying Health Insurance Add-ons

Add-on covers are extra benefits that you need to buy separately by paying more. To choose the right add-on, keep these things in mind:

• 1. Coverage : Check what medical expenses the add-on covers. Make sure it matches your needs by reading the policy details carefully.
• 2. Waiting Period : Some add-ons have a waiting period, meaning you need to wait a certain time before using the benefits. Check this to avoid problems when making a claim.
• 3. Cost (Premium) : Add-ons require an extra payment. Before buying, check if the cost fits within your budget.
• 4. Exclusions : Not everything is covered under add-ons. Read the exclusions to know what is not included, so you don’t face surprises later.

Conclusion

Add-on covers make your health insurance better by giving extra benefits like critical illness, maternity, and accident coverage. You need to pay extra for them, but they help you save money and get the right protection. By choosing add-ons based on your needs, you can get complete coverage and worry less about medical costs.