What Is Waiting Period In Health Insurance

What is the Waiting Period?

The waiting period is the time you have to wait before you can claim your insurance, even if the policy is active. During this time, you cannot claim for any disease, even if your insurance covers it. You must wait for the required period set by the insurer before you can file a claim.

When buying a health insurance plan, it’s important to know how long you’ll need to wait before making a claim. Waiting periods are common in many types of insurance policies, and the length depends on the coverage you choose.

Types of Waiting Period

Here are all the types of waiting periods:

1. Initial Waiting Period

The Initial Waiting Period is the time you have to wait right after buying a health insurance policy, before making any claim. The initial waiting period in health insurance usually lasts for 30 days.

2. Specific Disease Waiting Period

Some of the specific diseases, such as hernia, cataracts, joint replacements, ENT disorders, osteoporosis, and cataracts, have an approximate waiting period of 4 years. You have to complete the specific waiting period to get coverage for such an illness.

3. Pre-existing Diseases Waiting Period

At the time of purchase of a health insurance plan, if you are already suffering from some disease, such as diabetes or high blood pressure, you will not be covered for a specific period. The pre-existing disease waiting period is usually for 1 to 3 years (depending on the policy or insurance company).

4. Critical Illnesses Waiting Period

This type of waiting period is the span for which you have to wait before you claim for treatment of serious diseases like cancer, heart attack, kidney failure, etc. It is usually for 90 days, which can vary depending on the plan.

5. Maternity Benefit Waiting Period

Many plans offer maternity benefits, and thus, this waiting period comes into existence. You may need to wait 9 months to 4 years before you can claim it. So, it is advisable to buy a maternity benefit plan early to get full coverage on time.

Features of the Waiting Period

Some of the main features of the waiting period are as follows:

• The waiting period starts from the day your health insurance starts.
• This waiting time can vary for different health problems and policies.
• You can claim specific treatments only after the waiting period is over.
• General diseases are covered even before the waiting period.

What is the Need for a Waiting Period in Health Insurance?

The need for a waiting period in health insurance arises due to several reasons. Some of them are as follows:

• To avoid immediate claims from the policyholders.
• The waiting period provides financial stability to the insurer.
• It acts as a trust period for the insurer and the policyholder.
• The waiting period gives full coverage once it is over.
• It promotes genuine claims from the insured.

How to Reduce Waiting Period in Health Insurance?

If you are looking forward to reducing the number of days of your waiting period in health insurance, here are some measures to use:

• Get some add-ons or riders for your critical illness or maternity expenses to reduce the waiting period in the health insurance plan.
• You can also compare some plans of the leading insurance company to get a health insurance plan with a lower waiting period.
• Get coverage through a group health insurance plan offered by the employer. These insurance plans have a very minimal waiting period to serve.

The above-discussed measures can be used to reduce or avoid the waiting period in your health insurance plan. You can also buy the policy at a young age so that you can spend the waiting period without any worry.

Conclusion

Waiting period is one of the important features of health insurance that you should check before purchasing any plan. It restricts the policyholder from making an immediate claim and promotes reliable claims of the insured. It is always advisable to be aware of the waiting period to get the best benefit of your health insurance policy.

Choose suitable health policies, compare their waiting period, and get the best benefit out of them!

To know more about the waiting period of your selected health insurance plan, feel free to contact our customer care service center through email or contact number.