4 Importance of Health Insurance during Covid-19
How does health insurance act as your rescuer during the covid-19 outbreak? India has one of the lowest healthcare penetrations in the world, according to the Central Government data.
The same statistics also report that more than half of all healthcare-related expenses in India are borne out-of-pocket which is much lower than the global average.
In a time like this, the importance of having adequate healthcare coverage cannot be stressed enough.
Why Do We Need An Insurance Cover For Covid-19?
During this pandemic, everyone is at increased risk and since the disease is also new to the world, the treatment is still being developed and optimized.
Health insurance during this time is very important and the following points will stress why it is important.
1. ICU Requirement is High in Covid Treatment: The challenge with Covid-19 treatment is that quite a-several hospitalized cases require intensive care treatment and ventilator support, eventually.
With the current caseload in India, both of these are scarce and expensive which drives the cost of treatment upwards very quickly.
Cases of hospitalization charges running upwards of Rs. 10 lakhs in tier 1 and tier 2 cities are not uncommon. Without Mediclaim, this is a huge bill for the average Indian citizen.
2. Income Benefit: Some healthcare plans have income benefits that can help families coping with financial difficulties arising out of unemployment (due to hospitalization) triggered by this pandemic.
3. Expensive Protective Gear: Even wherever hospitalization doesn’t require intensive care, the cost of general treatment is high due to the special protective gear required for Covid-19.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits including gloves, masks, and other supplies to protect healthcare workers come at a cost, and the final bill amount could still end up in a few lakh rupees due to this.
4. Emergency Coverage: Often there is a requirement for immediate hospitalization due to oxygen levels falling abruptly.
This is more of a concern in rural and semi-urban areas where regular transport at odd hours might be difficult.
During such times, ambulance cover provided in a healthcare plan can be a savior.
Conclusion
Healthcare in normal times is imperative, during a pandemic it is indispensable. According to Insurance Industry insiders, the rate of healthcare enrolment in India has gone up sharply post the Covid-19 pandemic.
Hopefully, people have already begun to realize the importance of having adequate coverage for tough times.
