A critical illness can strike without warning and leave you and your family drained financially. Be it hospital rents or doctors’ fees, surgery or prescription drugs, the cost of medical treatment can potentially wipe out your life’s savings, especially if you don’t have Health Insurance.
Even if you do have insurance, many of the policies do not cover a wide range of illnesses and treatments.
Expenses not covered by Health Insurance
So, what are the conditions under which you may not be covered even if you have insurance? All insurance policies come with exclusions. These exclusions could be temporary or permanent.
- Pre-existing illnesses: If you have any condition or illness at the time of buying the policy, treatment for that will not be covered till a specific period of time passes – anywhere from one to four years. For senior citizens, a Health Insurance policy may not cover pre-existing illness at all.
- Waiting period: Most policies will not cover medical treatment of any kind in the first 30 to 90 days of purchase. Some of them may cover medical expenses to treat accidental injuries.
- Waiting period for specific conditions: Most policies will specify a waiting period of anywhere from 1 to 3 years for a list of illnesses. These often include:
- Spinal and bone disorders such as arthritis, osteoporosis etc
- Joint replacement surgery
- Cataract
- Stones (kidney, gall bladder)
- Ulcers, piles etc
- Types of tumours and cysts
- Permanent exclusions: Health Insurance policies typically don’t cover expenses incurred on cosmetic surgery, dental treatments, AIDs and other sexually transmitted diseases, bariatric surgery, maternity treatment, psychiatric disorders, treatment outside India and others.
How to raise funds for critical illness treatment?
So, if you aren’t covered by insurance, what is the best way to raise money to fund your critical illness treatment?
Some people liquidate their long-term savings, others borrow from family and friends, and a few may even use their credit cards to settle the medical bills.
But a great option to consider is a personal loan. A personal loan offers several benefits:
- Get funds quickly: You can get a personal loan is as short a time as four hours. You don’t even have to leave your home to apply for a personal loan. You can do the entire process online with minimal documentation and hassle. When you are dealing with critical illness, time and convenience is paramount.
- Repay in easy instalments: The best thing about a personal loan is that you can repay the amount in pocket-friendly instalments over 3 to 5 years. You can get a loan with an EMI as low as Rs 2187 per lakh.
- Large loan amounts: The cost of medical treatment for a critical illness can run into several lakhs. You can get a personal loan of up to Rs 40 lakh based on your eligibility.
- Use funds as you wish: You can use the money from a personal loan to cover any expense and any medical condition.
- No need to liquidate life’s savings: You have carefully and meticulously built up a portfolio of long-term savings that’s earning you a healthy return. A personal loan will help you keep that intact, while taking care of your immediate expenses.
HDFC Bank offers quick and convenient personal loans on competitive terms. You can check your eligibility for a Personal Loan in minutes and, if you are interested, apply for one right away in a just a few clicks. Select HDFC Bank customers can get a pre – approved Personal Loan within 10 seconds, whereas non – HDFC Bank customers can get the loan within 4 hours. And with EMIs at Rs. 2,162 per Lac, you can easily enjoy a stress free repayment process.
* Terms & conditions apply. Personal Loan disbursal at sole discretion of HDFC Bank Ltd.
