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Planning for retirement? Hope you have the right health insurance

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Published on July 26, 2021. EST READ TIME: 3 minutes

In India, from the moment you start working and earning, your elders usually encourage you to save for rainy days and plan for retirement. And you probably think - “What, really? There’s so much time left for that”. While you may scoff at the idea when you are young, remember that your elders are speaking from their own experience. Once you retire, you will have a limited source of income, and during that phase of life, you will become more susceptible to several diseases. Now imagine being diagnosed with a critical illness after 60. It would eat into your savings if you don’t have a health insurance policy with wide coverage. Therefore, no matter when you start taking retirement plans seriously, ensure that health insurance is a part of it. Here’s how you can select the best health insurance plan in India.

 

Importance of planning retirement

Time flies swiftly, and therefore, planning is important for a safe and happy future. To minimize unwanted financial contingencies, retirement planning is a must, especially keeping the inflation rate in mind. The cost of quality healthcare facilities, especially, has risen exponentially with medical science making remarkable progress. However, if you start your retirement planning at an early stage of your career, you can set achievable targets. 

It’s crucial because you must ensure the wellbeing of yourself and your family members. After retirement, you will have a limited source of income, and will mostly rely on your savings to deal with medical emergencies. The concept of job safety is also, unfortunately, diminishing with companies investing more in technology than human resources. So, make hay while the sun shines.  

Why health insurance is a must for all?

You need health insurance at every stage of your life and not just when you are nearing retirement. Youngsters today suffer from many lifestyle diseases. So, you might think that because you feel healthy now, you don’t need insurance. However, at the nascent stage of your career, your salary might not be that great, and a disease or fatal accident can put you in a major financial crisis along with life-threatening health issues. The sum insured of the policy procured by your employer may not be adequate to take care of your needs. 

Similarly, as your family grows, you would need to protect your spouse and kids with family floater plans to ensure that they can avail the best medical services available. Next, old age means higher vulnerability to diseases and you need to prepare for that. So, if you think that health insurance is only for the elderly, you cannot be farther from the truth.

You need protection against critical illnesses after retirement

A health insurance policy with critical illness coverage can protect your savings against a wide range of illnesses that demand extensive treatment. The standard health insurance policy generally does not cover you against such ailments. The critical illness cover provides the policyholder a lump-sum benefit that helps them bear the cost of treatment toward illnesses and recuperation expenses. The payout is set at the time of buying the policy and the fixed sum is given to you irrespective of your hospital expenses. This amazing feature lets you use the surplus amount for other purposes like paying off any debt. 

Benefits of adding health insurance to your retirement portfolio early on

• Till a certain age, you don’t need to go through any medical check-ups, and you can get a health insurance policy immediately. It will be a hassle-free process. 
• The premiums are significantly low in your early 30s as compared to your late 40s. They increase with age. 
• When you are healthy and don’t make any claims, you are rewarded with great discounts for every claim-free year.
• All policies come with a waiting period for some diseases. By getting the policy early, you can easily see through that period and can use the policy to cover them at a later stage of your life. 
• There is no hassle in terms of renewability. 
• Since you won’t be working after reaching the retirement age or may switch to your own business at some stage, you won’t be covered by the policy provided by your employer. Only your individual health insurance policy will come to your aid. 

Conclusion

After having worked for 35-40 years of your life, you deserve to have a stress-free life post-retirement, when you can spend more time with the family, take more vacations, pursue hobbies, and not worry about rising medical bills. And the best health insurance plan in India with low premiums and wide coverage can help you concentrate solely on your health without any financial stress. 

 

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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