Healthcare cost has gone up quite significantly over the past few years due the rising inflation and advancement in medical science. The annual premium varies depending on the type of health cover and family members to be covered. Your cover should not be less than Rs 5 lakh. In case you cannot afford to buy separate covers for each family member, look for a family floater policy with a higher sum insured.

Industry regulator, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) had also allowed health insurance portability in October 2011, so that policyholders can transfer their accrued benefits to a new insurance plan that they buy from some other insurer. This has allowed policyholders to avail benefits like coverage for pre-existing diseases and waiver of waiting period when they switch from one insurer to another.

Individuals should not make the decision based only on the premium comparison, one should be aware of the extent of coverage (sum assured), compare features and exclusions to make an informed decision.

For better understanding, it is always better to go through the policy wordings before making the decision.

Policy wording can be downloaded from various insurance company websites or insurance agents too can provide them on request.

Individuals should be careful while filling the proposal form and must reveal correct medical condition at the time of purchase. They should also inform the insurance company about any existing medical condition so that there is no problem at the time of registering claim.