Have You Made Your Health Plans Yet

Starting a new family or worried about your elderly parents? Stop worrying and choose the best health plans to secure your future.

A health plan is a specific benefit package offered by an insurer, an organization or a self-funded employer for the emergency medical services required by the plan members for a fixed or prepaid premium. An organization offering health plan must be an organized system, should have a set of basic health maintenance and treatment services and should have voluntarily enrolled group of members.

The advantages of being a member of a health plan are plentiful. You will be able to avail high quality health care services, extra benefits, more preventive services and fewer expenses all at a reasonable package. Health plans give you the opportunity to select a personal care physician who will take care of your team of health professionals. Also, you have the liberty to change your healthcare manager and opt for someone more efficient and qualified if you wish to.

Health plan allows members to visit their physician as many times as they think is required. This helps in overcoming smaller problems which can avoid a bigger problem later. These steady visits will cover all kinds of diagnostic tests that are commonly done such as diabetic, blood pressure checks, hypertension, sugar levels, mammograms etc.  The amount of money invested is to be claimed back with the bills produced after the treatment is done. All one needs to do is fill up a claim form.

However, before jump for a health plan it is imperative that you conduct a study of the quality of services they provide. Many health plan organizations carry out internal quality assurance exercises and keep a tab on their doctors. The health plan you choose must be certified by the health board. Major medical decisions should be taken by the medical director only.

Following are some of the parameters used to check the quality of a health plan.

• ·         The health plan should be highly rated by its members
• ·         It is an accredited organization
• ·         Has the best doctors
• ·         Provides the services your require
• ·         Is not too expensive

Over 200 plans on health are available in the market in India. Eight out of those 200 can be considered to be the most popular and important plans. They are: cashless mediclaim, individual health insurance, group health insurance, critical health insurance, family floater plan, travel health insurance, hospitalization, and senior people insurance and maternity insurance.