Why Medical Tests are Important For Health Insurance?

A medical test is required for health insurance to determine the applicant’s medical fitness before offering them a health insurance plan. Individuals over the age of 40 or 45 years are required to undergo a pre-policy medical test to decide if they qualify for insurance coverage. The medical test required for health insurance further helps in estimating the health insurance premium quote. Moreover, the cost of a pre-medical test is mostly borne by the insurance company but this may differ based on the policy terms.

 

When you are planning to buy a health insurance plan, one of the steps in the process is usually a health status examination. You will be asked to undergo a few medical tests to ascertain your health status and the results from the reports will indicate how healthy or prone to illnesses you are. The medical test required for health insurance provides useful information that is then used to ascertain the premium and other terms of the policy like the waiting period on pre-existing illnesses.

This need for a pre-policy health check-up is true for most insurance providers. Let us look at the need for a pre-insurance health check-up and explore whether it is possible to secure health insurance without a medical exam.

Why Do Health Insurers Insist on Medical Tests?

When you buy medical insurance, you pay a premium to avail the benefits. This premium amount and other terms of your policy depend upon your health status. If you have a family history of a particular illness, it makes you more susceptible to that illness and therefore a potential medical risk. This will shoot up the premium you pay because you are highly probable to avail the insurance sooner than later.

 

If you are in good health and all your vitals are fine, you will likely pay lower premiums as compared to a policyholder with a pre-existing condition. For insurance providers, the pre-insurance health check-up is a way of assessing the likelihood and extent to which a customer is a financial risk for them.

 

Health insurance without medical check-ups is like a rudderless ship, we don’t really know where we are headed or what might be coming for us in the future.

Why Should You Get a Pre-Policy Medical Test?

Health insurance with no medical exam can be a slippery slope. If you get a health insurance policy after undergoing a thorough medical examination, there are many benefits:

Quick Claim Approvals

When you undergo a health checkup prior to buying a health insurance plan, you give the insurance provider an up-to-date record of your health status.

 

When, later on, there's a need for you to claim or avail the insurance benefits, you can get faster approvals because the insurance provider already has all your medical history on their file.

 

Usually, claims get rejected when the insurer finds that you had a pre-existing condition that you did not disclose at the time of buying the policy or if the claim amount exceeds the threshold of the policy. You can avoid both those situations through a medical test prior to purchase.

 

Lower Premiums

If your medical status exams show that you are in good health, you will be eligible for a lower premium as the insurer will deem you a low-risk candidate. If you don't have a family history or prior record of serious illnesses or chronic issues, your health insurance premium will be lower than for someone with pre-existing conditions. Having said that, make sure that your coverage is still robust.

 

Permanent Exclusions

Just because you have a pre-existing condition does not mean you will not be covered. Sometimes insurance providers issue health plans with the exclusion of the pre-existing illness. So you cannot file a claim for the illness in question, but can still avail the benefits for other medical issues. This is not possible if you take health insurance without a medical test.

 

Coverage for Pre-existing Conditions

Even if you have pre-existing diseases, insurance providers don't always deny coverage for pre-existing conditions. Instead, there's a concept of the waiting period. Once the waiting period has passed, your previous illnesses are also covered under your health plan, even if for a slightly higher premium.

 

Once again, this is only possible if you get a medical check-up. Health insurance without a medical check-up may not be able to offer this.

Are There Any Health Plans Available If You Fear Medical Tests?

Even though it's preferable to get your health check-up done at the time of buying insurance, we understand that some people don't like to go through the process, or might have other reasons.

 

There are still options available in the form of health insurance without medical tests. Let's look at some of these plans below:

Oriental Insurance

Oriental Insurance is a public health insurance provider that provides the Happy Family Floater plan without any medical check-up till you are 60 years of age.

 

Star Health

This insurer has plans that don’t require you to undergo a medical check-up either. Plans for health insurance with no medical exams include the Star Senior Citizen Red Carpet Health Insurance Policy, Family Health Optima, Mediclassic, among others. The senior citizen health plans, for example, does not require a medical check-up at any entry age and provides cover for senior citizens up to 75 years of age.

 

Religare Health Insurance

Religare or currently known Care Health Insurance also has flexible plans when it comes to the medical health status criteria. The Unique Care Plan offered by them does not ask for medical screening for any age.

Final Takeaway

Getting tested for medical fitness can help you and your insurance provider make better-informed decisions about your health insurance. Buy a health insurance policy on Bajaj Markets and avail benefits like cashless health insurance and coverage across 4000 network hospitals in the country.

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