Hospital Daily Cash in Health Insurance

What Is Hospital Daily Cash Insurance?

Apart from your hospitalisation bills, there are several other miscellaneous and inevitable expenses that may crop up during the hospitalisation period. While your health insurance plan may cover your hospitalisation charges, you will have to pay out-of-pocket for these miscellaneous overheads. This is where hospital daily cash policies come in handy. 

Under a hospicash insurance policy, you will be entitled to a fixed sum insured every day during the hospitalisation period.  This hospi cash or daily allowance can be used to meet miscellaneous expenses resulting from your hospital stay like the cost of travel. Such fixed allowances can also be used to compensate for the loss of income for the days you are confined to the hospital. Usually, this cash allowance ranges from ₹250-₹5,000, but can vary depending on the terms of your insurance document. You can either purchase a health insurance plan with daily cash benefits or opt for the same as an optional cover along with your existing health plan.  

Documents Needed for Getting Hospital Daily Cash Benefits

You would need the following documents to claim the daily cash benefit in your health insurance policy: 

• Proof of your hospitalisation for any length of time

• Discharge summary from the hospital

Conditions Under a Hospicash Policy 

You can only claim the benefits from your hospicash policy if you meet the following list of conditions:

• Minimum Duration of Hospitalisation 

Every hospicash insurance policy will stipulate the minimum period of hospitalisation required to qualify for the daily hospital cash benefits listed under it. Most insurance policies have a 24-48-hour hospitalisation requirement for the hospicash benefit to be activated.  

• Total Days Covered

Your insurer will extend the daily hospital cash benefits for a certain prefixed tenure. While the tenure covered under this benefit can range from 15-180 days, it may vary from one plan to the next. Thus, to know your specific eligibility period, it is important to read your policy document carefully. 

• Waiting Periods and Pre-Existing Diseases

Your hospital daily cash policy may also include certain waiting periods during which you are disbarred from filing a claim against the policy. For instance, some daily hospital cash policies may not offer coverage for illnesses contracted within the first 30 days of purchasing the plan. 

Similarly, there might also be a clause in your hospicash insurance policy relating to pre-existing diseases (PED). Under this clause, you might be able to claim benefits for hospitalisations related to the PED only after the lapse of a certain period, say 24-48 months. 

• Deductibles 

Most hospital daily cash policies come with a one-day deductible that needs to be paid to activate the daily cash benefit clause in your health insurance plan. Thus, for instance, if you are hospitalised for 10 days, you will be eligible for 9 days of daily hospital cash benefits, after the one-day deductible is subtracted from your total. 

• Policy Exclusions

Every hospicash insurance policy has certain exclusions like day-care procedures that necessitate hospitalisations of less than 24 hours, maternity-related expenses, etc. It is important to carefully assess your policy document to know these exclusions before purchasing the policy and filing a claim. 

Benefits of Opting for a Hospicash Insurance Policy

• Fixed Daily Cash Allowance

The fixed daily cash benefits in health insurance plans help you take care of all miscellaneous expenses during a hospital stay. This amount is fixed, irrespective of your actual expenses, and can be used in a way you deem fit. 

• Eases Financial Burdens During Emergencies

Having access to a daily cash reserve to fall back on can make a significant difference when faced with a healthcare emergency. In times of unfortunate events like accidents or emergency ICU admissions, the financial support provided by hospital daily cash benefits helps mitigate some of the financial stress on an individual. For instance, such policies offer twice the normal cash allowance if the policyholder is admitted to the ICU. This helps ease the financial burden on the family members of the policyholder. 

• Tax Benefits under Section 80D

If you opt for a hospicash policy, you can claim a tax-deductible of up to ₹25,000 under Section 80D of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The deductible amount can go up to ₹30,000 for policyholders above the age of 60 years. 

Conclusion 

A hospicash insurance policy provides you with the peace of mind you need when dealing with a dire medical crisis. While a regular health plan covers your medical expenses, a hospicash plan ensures that all the additional expenses during your hospital stay remain covered. In other words, this fixed daily cash allowance covers all your bases to ease the financial burden on your pocket. 

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