Health insurance policies are a way to keep yourself ready for any medical emergency that may arise in the future. A sedentary lifestyle and stressed work environment are exposing us to various lifestyle-related ailments like diabetes or blood-pressure. Hence, health insurance isbecoming mandatory these days. It helps you to tackle any unannounced medical emergency, which requires special financial attention.
What is a pre-existing illness?
Pre-existing illness is any disease or medical condition that you may be suffering before the date of issuance of the policy. Pre-existing illnesses include the following:
- Any existing illness or condition including the signs and symptoms that you are suffering from
- Prior hospitalization or surgery
It is essential to check the policy documents for knowing more about the terms and conditions of pre-existing illnesses. The terms for illnesses included under this clause might be different for different insurance companies.
However, the pre-existing illness will include the following:
- Medical history of gestational diabetes, heart attack and so on
- Hospitalization for kidney stone or angioplasty
- Signs of obesity
- Medication for hypertension
For all the illnesses mentioned in the above list, there is a waiting period clause mentioned in your policy. Let us understand more about the waiting period and its types.
Waiting period
In any health insurance, you buy, you will find a clause for the waiting period. Based on various scenarios, there is a waiting period associated with it. The waiting period is defined as the time for which any policyholder is supposed to wait before filing an insurance claim.
There are different two types of waiting periods defined for health insurance
- Initial waiting period
The initial waiting period for any health insurance is 30 days to 90 days for most health insurance companies. This waiting period clause is mentioned in the policy terms so that the policyholder knows that any diseases contracted in this period will not be paid. There are exception cases like accidents. Only the accidental injuries are covered in the initial waiting period provided there is a minimum of 24 hours of hospitalization required.
- Pre-existing illness waiting period
When you buy a family health insurance or health insurance for senior citizens, there is always a pre-existing waiting period clause mentioned in the policy. This clause refers to the waiting period for any ailments or illnesses that you are afflicted with at the time of purchase of the health insurance.
There are various ways to find out if you have any pre-existing illnesses. Many insurance companies ask you to go through the pre-policy medical checkups.
Medical Checkups
A medical checkup is your way to get closer to your desired health insurance policies. The insurance companies ask you to go through a series of tests (if you are 45 years of age and above) to see if you are suffering from any of the medical emergencies that might seem risky to cover. These medical checkups also save your time and effort during the claim settlement phase. So, these medical checkups will help the insurer to decide if they want to offer you the policy or not.
Health insurance is a critical investment. The pre-existing illnesses should not stop you from buying health insuranceplans.
Before applying, make sure you voluntarily go through a complete health checkup in advance. If there are any ailments and illnesses you have been recently diagnosed with, do not hide it from the insurer. Your insurance company will be in a much better place to help you out with your policies ad premiums. It will also help you understand your terms and conditions better.
