You recently landed a new job that pays you well and comes with several perks. Once you accept the offer, you are informed that the company has tied up with a leading insurance provider for a health insurance cover for all employees - and you could get a great cover for a very affordable price.
You breathe a sigh of relief that you have free health insurance - and you don't have to spend time, money, or put yourself through the arduous task of finding and buying a personal health insurance plan! With this company health insurance, you are truly sorted - right?
Wrong.
There are many situations where your corporate health insurance can fall short. And, when you or your family needs cover for hospitalisation, it might just be too late to go back and buy a personal insurance plan.
These situations are hard to imagine but occur more often than you'd think - giving us 3 reasons why you should not entirely rely on your corporate health insurance plan for your healthcare needs.
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3 reasons you cannot rely only on your company health plan
- It will discontinue as soon as you move from this company: Your corporate health insurance policy is a group insurance policy tied to the company you are currently working with, and not to you specifically. This means that once you leave this job, you will be left without a cover. And should you choose to change your career path - decide to pursue higher studies or even join a budding startup, you might end up without health insurance.
This is extremely risky - especially considering that you will be older by the time you decide to move jobs - which brings us to the next point…
- You might not get the policy later: As you grow older the risk of getting a lifestyle disease like diabetes or hypertension increases. Once you suffer from a chronic lifestyle disease, the insurer may hike premiums by 20-50% to cover the additional risk.
In addition to these premium hikes, there's always a risk that your proposal might be declined altogether, and you might not get a policy at all.
Imagine growing older, moving closer to your retirement date, and realising that you will not get a health insurance plan for an affordable cost anymore - so, you've to make the choice - of either going without a health cover or paying an unreasonable premium for a mediocre cover!
- A corporate medical insurance policy is not personalised to your family's long-term medical needs: An insurance cover is an extremely personal product that must be customised to your specific needs.
However, when a corporate policy is designed, it is done considering the budget limitations your company might allocate. As your company's HR tries to get the best possible deal for the employee group, at the least possible cost, you will end up with -
- A less than optimal cover, that won't provide adequate sum insured for all your family's health care expenses
- A 'one-size fits all' plan that won't be personalised to your needs and medical history.
Insurance company be like: