Know the Basics About Top-Up & Super Top-up Health Insurance Plans

Changing lifestyle has seen changing medical needs over the years. There is an increase in the incidence of lifestyle diseases with more and more people resorting to a sedentary lifestyle. While a health insurance plan is a way to ensure you remain at peace, both mentally and financially, how do you decide what is right for you?

While you pick the right health insurance cover, you need to determine your needs at first. Evaluating your family’s medical history is essential, and it helps in forecasting your health too. Health insurance covers not only protect you in emergency medical situations but also safeguard your savings.

With a plethora of options, it can be confusing to select the right plan. But top-ups to your policy are here to help you save a handful while you get more than average insurance cover.

What is top-up health insurance?

A top-up plan comes in force when the coverage from your basic insurance plan is exhausted. This limit is typically over and above your base insurance policy. These top-up plans are available at an economical rate compared to plans with higher sum assured.

Top up health insurance plans have a deductible component to them. It is the threshold which the insured is required to reach before the top-up cover kicks in. A smart move would be opting for a policy with a lower threshold as these top-up plans come into the picture only after the threshold amount is reached.

Let us understand it with an example.

Mr. Suresh has a health insurance plan with a sum assured of ₹ 6 lakhs. An unexpected heart attack occurs, and the hospitalisation costs come to ₹ 7 lakhs. Considering his standard policy, he would be required to pay from his pocket above the sum assured. But Mr. Suresh, being a prudent financial decision-maker, has purchased a top-up plan of ₹ 12 lakhs with a deductible of ₹ 6 lakhs. In such scenarios, the insurance company will cover any additional costs, and he need not worry about it.

What is super top-up health insurance?

Akin to top-up policy, a super top-up plan also covers the insured after the standard health cover is exhausted. But a super top-up policy is available for multiple cases of hospitalisation, unlike a top-up cover which can be used for a single instance only.

Continuing the example of Mr. Suresh, where he faces a second stroke in a 3 months span, and the cost of treatment amounts to ₹ 8 lakhs this time, a top-up plan does not cover this treatment as it is valid for a single case of hospitalisation. Had Mr. Suresh opted for a super top-up cover of the same amount, the second treatment would be covered under the same super top-up cover.

So if your regular health policy does not offer adequate coverage, opting for top-up covers is an economical alternative. Make sure these take advantage of these cheap health insurance plans to get the maximum coverage without breaking your bank.