Does Your Health Insurance Cover Overseas Cost?

Many high-income individuals prefer to get treated overseas in case of critical illnesses, to take advantage of the technological advancement in medicine in the. Alternatively, in the case of life-threatening diseases, you may be compelled to look outside your country for a cure. A major impediment in both cases is the cost.

The average cost incurred in the US in case of a heart attack is $760,000 (over 5 crore rupees), compared to Rs.3.5 lakhs in India. Because of the high cost of healthcare overseas and the unfavourable exchange rate, Indians going abroad find it difficult to make the payment out of their own pockets.

SO, Can the Coverage of Your Health Insurance Extend to Overseas Expenses? Probably not!

Indian health insurance providers do not, as a rule, include overseas treatment within their coverage; in fact, they explicitly exclude it. As a result, high net-worth individuals often purchase insurance from insurers in their country of preference to pay for treatment.

Recently, several Indian insurers-three to be exact-have also introduced health insurance plans which specifically target treatment in countries other than India. Considering the rapid economic development in India, this is a good move. Here is a look at your options.

Health Plans with Overseas Medical Cover Table

Disclaimer : *Policybazaar does not endorse, rate or recommend any particular insurer or insurance product offered by an insurer.  

( The above table does not represent any particular order and the ICR is based on the IRDAI Annual Report 2018-2019)

Checkout the plans in detail below:

1. Aditya Birla Activ Assure Diamond Health Insurance Plan

• This plan does not cover medical expenses abroad, however, it offers emergency air-ambulance cover overseas.
• 586 day-care procedures are covered under this plan
• This plan also provides 150% restoration of sum insured
• Moreover, it offers cancer and accidental hospitalization booster benefit

2. Bajaj Allianz Global Personal Guard Plan

• This plan provides complete protection against accidents all over the world
• This plan provides sum insured options up to Rs 25 Crore
• It covers accidental death and injuries
• Covers entire family under a single plan

3. Liberty Health Connect Supra

• Liberty Health Connect Supra offers worldwide coverage
• No medical check-up is required up to 65 years of age
• It is available in two variants i.e. Top-up and Super Top-up plan
• The sum insured options range from Rs 3 Lakh to Rs 100 lakh
• The plan also provides a family discount of 10% if two or more members are covered under the same plan

4. Max Bupa Heartbeat Health Plan

• Comes in Silver, Gold and Platinum variety, and only the Platinum plan gives worldwide coverage
• Individual and family floater plans, both available-for Platinum plans, coverage is from Rs.15 lakhs to Rs1 Crore
• The Max Bupa Heartbeat Family First policy offers coverage across the world, while Heartbeat Platinum offers coverage in all countries except Canada
• Provides coverage to 9 critical illnesses, as well as emergency medical evacuation and hospitalization
• Family floater coverage for up to 6 people-2 adults and 4 children (at most)
  
  Click Here for Max Bupa Health Insurance Plans

5. Manipal Cigna Pro Health Plan

• Provides international coverage only in case of emergencies.
• Coverage can be between Rs 2.5 lakh and Rs 1 Crore
• Comes in 4 varieties- Protect, Plus, Preferred and Premier. The first two offers emergency worldwide coverage up to the value of full sum insured, while the last two provide maximum international coverage up to the sum of Rs.10 lakhs.
• Robotic surgery or surgery by remote techniques are not covered under this plan.
• 20% co-pay is applicable for people above the age of 65 years

          Check all Plans of ManipalCigna Health Insurance Here

6. National Overseas Mediclaim Policy for Business and Holiday Travel

• This plan covers medical emergencies while travelling abroad
• The policy holder is required to bear the first 100 dollars of the expenses incurred
• There is an option avail worldwide coverage including the USA and Canada as well as excluding the USA and Canada
• The coverage amount for medical illness, evacuation, repatriation is USD 50,000 to USD 5 Lakh depending on the plan chosen

7. New India Assurance Global Mediclaim Policy

• The policy covers hospitalization expenses worldwide under Plan B
• For worldwide treatment plan, the sum insured option is USD 1 million (Lifetime USD 2 million)
• This Plan is available to people who have a health insurance policy above Rs 8 Lakh
• Medical second opinion cover is also provided under this plan

8 .Oriental Overseas Mediclaim Policy

• It is an all-inclusive plan for every person with the intent of visiting overseas countries.
• The sum insured for this plan is Rs 50,000 to Rs 5,00,000
• It covers both business and holiday trips for individuals.
• Apart from those visiting overseas for business and holidays, this plan also covers students studying abroad.

9. Religare Health Insurance – Care:

• The sum insured amount ranges from Rs 4 Lakh to Rs 6 Crore Comes with a variety of options, like Floater plans, Co-payment, and No-claims bonus.
• The plan provides add-on options for global health cover in network hospitals and international second opinion benefit
• Does not cover maternity or pregnancy-related expenses, other than ectopic pregnancy
•  Minimum age of entry is 5 years.
• Discount for e-policy, family plan, loyalty, co-pay and long tenures.
• International costs will be reimbursed only in India, and in Indian currency.
  
  Read More about Religare Health Insurance

10. Royal Sundaram Lifeline Elite Plan

• This plan provides worldwide emergency hospitalization cover up to Rs.20 lakh or 50% of the insured amount.
• The coverage can be extended to the US and Canada
• The policy includes deductibles of $1000
• It also included international treatment cover for specified critical illnesses
• The sum insured amount ranges from Rs 25 Lakh to Rs 1.5 Crore

So, your typical health insurance plan does not cover international expenses, but you can go for one of these specialized policies which will cover the cost of treatment abroad. The annual premium for these plans is much higher than a plan providing equivalent benefits but restricted to India.

As these plans cost more than twice what a similar domestic plan would, but save a lot money when caught in a medical emergency in a foreign land or to avail the best possible treatment overseas.