🟠 Protection Gap
Filling Your Health Insurance Gap
Medical inflation in India runs at 14% per year. A single hospitalisation without adequate cover can wipe out years of savings overnight.
How Much Cover Do You Actually Need?
The minimum recommended health cover for a family of three or four in a metro city is ₹10–15 lakh. Medical costs in tier-1 cities for serious conditions (cancer, cardiac surgery, organ transplant) routinely exceed ₹20–30 lakh at private hospitals. A ₹3–5 lakh employer cover is dangerously inadequate.
Critically, employer health cover disappears when you resign, are laid off, or the company changes its insurer. You need a personal policy that travels with you regardless of employment status.
Family Floater vs. Individual Plans
Family Floater (Recommended for most)
One shared sum insured covers the entire family. If the eldest member is below 45 and in good health, this is cost-effective. Cover: ₹15–25L.
Individual Plans for Seniors
Parents above 55 should have separate senior citizen health plans — they are excluded from most family floaters or priced expensively inside them.
Super Top-Up Plan
Cheapest way to dramatically increase cover. Works above a deductible (e.g., ₹5L base). A ₹20L super top-up above ₹5L deductible costs roughly ₹5,000–7,000 per year for a couple.
What to Watch Out For
- Pre-existing diseases have a 2–4 year waiting period on most policies. Buy young before conditions develop.
- Room rent sub-limits cap your entire bill, not just the room. Choose a plan with no sub-limits or at least a semi-private room limit.
- Co-payment clauses mean you pay 10–20% of every bill out of pocket. Avoid these if possible.
- No-claim bonus increases cover by 10–50% for every claim-free year — prefer policies with restoration benefit instead.