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Medical Insurance for Visually Impaired People – Find Out How It Works

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To be able to see the world around us is a great blessing that we often take for granted. But those who are visually impaired know how different the world can be for them. Thanks to Louis Braille though, people with vision impairment can learn, communicate and live in a better way. Which is why, World Braille Day is celebrated every year on January 4, to commemorate the birthday of Louis Braille.On this day, our aim should be to spread awareness about the importance of Braille as a medium of communication. We should also endeavour to protect the human rights of visually impaired people and ensure that they have access to quality healthcare facilities. For that, they must have a medical insurancepolicy that takes care of their unique needs. To know more about this, read on.

Who is considered visually impaired?

National Programme for Control of Blindness (NPCB) defines blindness under the following headings:

• The inability of a person to count fingers from a distance of 6metres or 20 feet (technical definition)

• Vision 6/60 or less with the best possible spectacle correction

• Decrease of field vision to 20 feet or less in the better eye

Further visual impairment can be categorised as partial or severe. In case of the latter, carrying out activities that require even moderate eyesight becomes impossible. NPCB also defines the various types of blindness, namely economic blindness, social blindness, manifest blindness, absolute blindness, curable and preventable blindness, since each is associated with varying degree of vision.

However, check with the insurance company on how it defines various disabilities. Each insurer may have different terms and conditions for congenital, accidental, and mental disability.

Health insurance for differently abled individuals

There are several government-sponsored medical insurance policies for the differently-abled, like Nirmalya Health Insurance and Swavalamban Health Insurance. However, they are meant for people in a certain income bracket, and often, the coverage provided by these plans proves to be inadequate when the treatment gets stretched. But thankfully, there are a few private insurance companies that provide medical insurance for the visually impaired and other differently abled people. Before a person becomes a policyholder, they must fulfil certain criteria to get the plan. Let’s see what they are.

Factors determining health insurance eligibility

Here are the factors to keep in mind:

• Risk rate:

It’s a measure of how likely you are to fall sick or meet with an accident. A bigger risk rate can mean a heftier premium, or in some rare cases, rejection of the application.

• Current health condition:

The insurer will want to know your health status in the last few months and determine if there are any pre-existing or chronic diseases that you suffer from.

• Family earnings and premium paying capacity:

Needless to say, anyone wanting a health plan must be able to pay the premium. The sum assured will also depend on this factor.

Benefits of getting a health insurance policy

Every person, irrespective of their current health status, must have insurance. The pandemic is still here, even though we hoped that 2022 was going to be a COVID-free year. Along with that, the risk of other ailments and accidents is always present. The advancement in medical science has also inflated the price of quality healthcare facilities.

Hence, amedical insurance policy plan will shield your savings and give you the choice to opt for the best treatment available. It will pay for the expenses incurred during the pre and post-hospitalisation period. And during hospitalisation, you can avail cashless treatment. Then there are many top-up plans available that can give a boost to the existing policy when the sum insured appears insufficient. Other benefits include free annual health check-ups, ambulance services, treatment expenses for AYUSH, mental illness, and tax benefits under Section 80D and 80U.

Conclusion

There are several medical insurance plans available in the market today, and they can be customised to specifically meet the needs and budget of visually impaired people. Conduct a thorough research before getting the plan so that you don’t miss out on any of the benefits that you are eligible for.

Disclaimer: The above information is for illustrative purpose only. For more details, please refer to policy wordings and prospectus before concluding the sales.

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