In 2014 more than 80% of the Indian population wasn’t covered under any health insurance. But this situation is steadily changing, with 27% of Indians are covered under health insurance in 2017, according to the National Health Profile (NHP) data.

In other words, since availing affordable medical services is not an easy task due to huge medical inflation, people are trying to protect themselves from long medical bills.

Now, your requirements with respect to health insurance do not remain the same throughout your life.

Especially after marriage, your responsibilities increase manifold, with you being accountable not just about your wellbeing, but also the wellbeing of your spouse.

Thus, a Family health insurance policy at this juncture is an absolute necessity.

Following are a few benefits you can avail from health insurance policies that will substantiate why should avail one post marriage:

1. All hospitalization benefits

A health insurance policy covers every expense incurred while seeking treatment at a hospital, whether for –

• Accidental hospitalization, or
• Illness-related hospitalization

Therefore, whether the hospitalization happened due to an accident or any critical illness, the insurance provider will take care of all the medical bills during your stay.

2.Pre & post hospitalization benefits

Now you might be wondering, what about the expenses incurred while seeking treatment, outside your hospital bills?

Well, health insurance does cover all relevant pre and post hospitalization expenses –

Pre-hospitalization:

Financial liabilities such as doctor’s fees, medication, and medical tests occur even before getting hospitalized. These pre-hospitalization costs are covered with health insurance.

Post-hospitalization

Even after discharge follow-up visits to doctors and other outpatient visits are covered under health insurance to save you from any further financial loss.

3.Maternity benefit

If you have plans of starting a family in the near future, you must think about purchasing health insurance with maternity cover at the earliest. With a maternity benefit add on, you will be able to avail coverage for all costs associated with childbirth, two years after you have purchased the policy.

This add-on provides pre-hospitalization coverage for 30 days, post-hospitalization coverage for 60 days, child-delivery expenses including medically necessary termination, infertility expenses, pre, and post-natal expenses incurred during the first 90 days.

4.Family floater

Before marriage, an individual health insurance plan might have been enough to protect you against financial liabilities incurred while seeking treatment.

But post-marriage, if you are seeking complete health insurance coverage for your entire family, a family floater is the right answer. Rather than just covering one person, a family floater plan provides you medical expense coverage for all members of your family, under one policy.

Thus, a family floater is advisable for every married person.

5.Tax benefit

As per section 80D in Income Tax Act, you can avail tax benefits on the premium you pay towards your health insurance policy. These are –

These tax benefits allow you to save a substantial portion of your tax payments and contribute to your savings fund, which is one of the priorities post-marriage.

6. No Claim Bonus

Again, post-marriage, most people look for ways to minimize their spending in a bit to save a substantial part of their income. In this respect, the No Claim Bonus benefit on health insurance can be particularly beneficial.

Now, what does it mean?

Well, No Claim Bonus refers to the benefit wherein for every no-claim year, you can avail a higher sum insured at the same premium for the subsequent year. This way, you can save on your premium payments towards your health insurance policy.

7. Complementary health check-ups

After marriage, your responsibilities increase manifold and that is why it is crucial for your remain healthy. To make sure that you are at the pink of your health, a yearly full-body check-up is a necessity.

 In this regard, the complimentary check-ups provided on the renewal of health insurance policies every year can be especially useful.

Once you renew your health insurance policy for the next year, you will be reimbursed for your total expense towards any annual medical test and check-ups at any hospital of your choice.

In conclusion, this policy can help you keep the balance of your marriage, expense, and inflation. So make haste and opt for a health insurance policy today!

Also read: Life insurance

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Disclaimer – This article is an informative piece. Before investing in any financial issue kindly check with a financial advisor.