Last Updated on 26/02/2022 by Deepak Singla
In the current times, healthcare is one of the most necessary yet highly expensive requirements. Health insurance for senior citizens is all the more important since they are much likely to fall sick. Moreover, it might not be possible for everybody to comfortably pay their medical expenses.
Hence, the best insurance companies in India have put forward some excellent healthcare plans for senior citizens. Choosing the best health insurance for senior citizens from hundreds of policies is indeed a difficult task. So, we have made the selection procedure easier for you by providing you with the top health insurance policies for Senior citizens. Read on to find out!
List of Best Health Insurance Plans for Senior Citizens
| Sl. No. | Senior Citizen Health Insurance Policy Name | Sum Assured | Entry Age (in years) | Policy Term | Pre-existing disease Waiting Period |
| 1. | Star Health Senior Citizen Red Carpet | INR 1 to 10 lakhs | 60 to 75 | 1 to 3 years | 1 year |
| 2. | New India Senior Citizen Mediclaim Policy | INR 1 to 1.5 lakhs | 60 to 80 | 1 year | 1.5 years |
| 3. | Bajaj Allianz Silver Health Senior Citizen Plan | INR 50,000 to INR 5 lakhs | 46 to 70 | Annual | 1 year |
| 4. | National Insurance Varistha Mediclaim Policy for Senior Citizens | INR 1 lakh (health coverage)
INR 2 lakhs (critical illness) |
60 to 80 | 1 year | 1 year |
| 5. | HDFC Ergo Health Optima Senior | INR 2 to 5 lakhs | 61 and above | N/A | 3 years |
1. Star Health Senior Citizen Red Carpet
Star Health Insurance Plans are one of the best insurance policies in India. Their Senior Citizen Red Carpet plan is one of the first plans to serve the specific medical needs of senior citizens. It has set a benchmark by increasing the maximum entry age from 69 to 70 years.
Features and Benefits
- Pre and post hospitalization expenses are included
- Coverage against daycare procedures, Ayurvedic treatments, etc. provided
- 5% discount on the premium if you purchase a 2-year policy
- Add-on benefits include room rent waiver and critical illness waiver.
Drawbacks
- Waiting period of 2 years for cataract, joint surgery, etc.
- Insured needs to pay 50% co-payment for the pre-existing disease claim
- 30% co-payment for the rest of the claims.
2. New India Senior Citizen Mediclaim Policy
New India is one of the best health insurance companies in India. Their Senior Citizen Mediclaim Policy covers both pre and post-hospitalization expenses and has become a highly recommended policy. Senior citizens will also receive cover for homoeopathic, ayurvedic, and Unani treatments.
Features and Benefits
- Pre and post hospitalization expenses are covered for a maximum of 30 and 60 days
- Cover for ambulance charges
- Health check-up costs will be reimbursed after every batch of 4 claim-free years
Drawbacks
- 10% loading charges if you renew the policy from 81 to 85 years of age.
- 20% loading charges if you renew when you are 86 to 90 years of age.
- Pre-acceptance medical check-up needed for new policyholders.
3. Bajaj Allianz Silver Health Senior Citizen Plan
Bajaj Allianz Silver Health Senior Citizen policy is a customer-oriented policy. This plan will cover all of your healthcare costs. Being a highly comprehensive plan, it offers ample flexibility when it comes to the insured sum.
Features and Benefits
- Cover for emergency hospitalization expenses up to a maximum of INR 1000 per claim.
- For each year of no claim, a cumulative bonus of 5% will be added
- 5% family discount
- Cover for pre and post-hospitalization costs provided
Drawbacks
- 2 years waiting period for pre-existing diseases
- Joint replacement surgery has a waiting period of 4 years
- Pre-medical screening cost is not paid for.
4. National Insurance Varistha Mediclaim Policy for Senior Citizens
The Varistha Mediclaim Policy by National Insurance is one of the most affordable plans that give you amazing benefits. With its great reputation, this plan is sure to provide you with convenient claim settlement. All your medical costs will be covered as per your needs.
Features and Benefits
- Insured sum increases by 5% for every claim-free year
- Health check-up expenses reimbursed once in every three years
- Cover for diseases like diabetes, pre-existing diseases, hypertension, etc. provided from the issuance of the insurance
Drawbacks
- 10% loading charges for the age group 76 to 80 up to 85 years
- 20% loading charges for people aged between 85 to 90 years.
- Pre-acceptance health check-up needed for new buyers.
- Making 10% co-payment is a must in all claims issued.
5. HDFC Ergo Health Optima Senior
HDFC Ergo Health Optima Senior was formerly known as Apollo Munich Health Optima Star. This is the perfect health insurance policy for senior citizens since it covers all your healthcare needs along with your spouse’s too.
Features and Benefits
- Provides the facility of insuring an elderly couple under a single policy.
- Half of the expenses for medical screening are paid for
- Day-care procedures for 140 days are covered
- Easy policy renewal
- 5% cumulative bonus provided for every claim-free year.
Drawbacks
- Waiting period for Pre-existing diseases is longer (3 years)
- Waiting period of 2 years for diseases like hernia, joint replacement, and cataract.
How to Select the Right Senior Citizen Health Insurance Plan?
You need to analyse the policies carefully if you wish to buy health insurance plans in India. The coverage of health insurance is all the more important for senior citizens since they are much more susceptible to diseases. If you don’t know what to look for in a Senior Citizen health insurance policy, then here are a few factors to check:
- You need to have a clear picture of the medical history and the lifestyle of the senior citizen. This will help you assess their needs and the type of coverage they need.
- Compare the coverage provided by the health insurance for different diseases, limitations, the requirement of pre-acceptance medical check-up, free look period, etc.
- Make sure that the entry age group is eligible for the senior citizen.
- Check out where the network hospitals are located. If some good network hospitals are nearby your home, then it will be easier to get a cashless claim without compromising on the treatment quality.
- Also, make sure if the premium amount and assured sum are comfortable for you. The insured sum should be enough to cover your treatment costs.
- The premiums should be affordable so that you can enjoy lifelong coverage.
- It’s better if the policy covers your spouse as well.
- Check out the waiting period in health insurance.
- Some insurers have a clause for 10% to 20% co-payment. Here, the insured individual has to pay a share of the claim amount. So, choose a policy with a lower co-payment.
Bottom line
It goes without say, health insurance is more of a necessity for senior citizens. Analysing and choosing the best health insurance for senior citizens could be a daunting task for many. Hence, to ease out the procedure for you, we have gone through the features of several policies and brought the best health plans for seniors in this article.
You could also purchase a plan from the list of best health insurance plans for family. These will cover the medical needs of your entire family including your parents.
Image Credit: financialexpress.com
