Max Bupa Senior First Health Insurance Plan – Review
Few days back, Max Bupa Health Insurance Company has launched Senior First health insurance plan. Health check-ups can be done on day-1. Reassure Benefit offers an unlimited base sum assured for long term treatments. This health insurance plan has several such features and benefits which are useful for senior citizens. What are the positive factors in this health insurance policy? Are there any hidden factors / negative factors in this health insurance plan. Should you opt for Max Bupa Senior First Health Insurance Plan? Let me review this health insurance policy in this article.
Also Read: Best Health Insurance Plans for Elderly Parents
Key Features and Benefits in Max Bupa Senior First Health Insurance
Here are the key features in this health insurance policy.
1) Health checkups can be done from day-1.
2) Coverage for day care treatments.
3) Reassure Benefit offers an unlimited base sum assured for long term treatments.
4) It comes with two plans viz a) Gold Plan and Platinum Plan. Under the gold plan the sum assured comes for 5 lacs and 10 lacs. Under Platinum plan, the sum assured is between 5 Lacs to 25 lacs.
5) No mandatory preissuance medical tests.
6) Safeguard Add-on helps for coverage for non payable items like PPE Kits, Gloves, Masks etc., and several other benefits.
7) There’s an optional benefit where you can reduce the copayment from 50% to either 40%, 30% or 20%.
8) For every claim free year, the sum assured gets increased by 10% up to a maximum of 100%.
9) This health insurance plan offers various discounts on taking policy for 2/3 years and on renewals.
10) No sub limits on common health conditions.
11) You can get income tax benefits u/s 80d for the premiums paid under the plan.
Max Bupa Health Insurance has latest incurred claim ratio of 54%
Plans available in Senior First Max Bupa Health Insurance Plan
This health insurance policy offers two plans:
a) Gold Plan – This plan is offered for the base sum assured for ₹ 5 Lacs or ₹ 10 Lacs.
b) Platinum Plan – This plan is offered for the base sum assured for ₹ 5 Lacs, 10 Lacs, 15 Lacs, 20 Lacs and 25 Lacs.
Here are the major benefits under both these plans.
Optional Benefits in Max Bupa Senior First Health Insurance
It offers two optional benefits:
1) Annual Aggregate Deductable – Under this option, one can opt for this aggregate deductable for 1 Lac, 2 lacs, 3 lacs, 4 lacs and 5 lacs.
2) Co payment modification – This health policy comes with 50% co-payment. However, with this optional benefit, one can reduce this to 40% or 30% or 20%.
What is Add-On Benefit under Senior First Max Bupa Plan?
This health insurance plan offers safeguard add-on.
1) With this add-on, one can get cashless experience and coverage even for non payable items like PPE kits, gloves, masks etc.
2) One can opt for increase in base sum assured year on year on cumulative basis, which is linked to the inflation rate.
3) There would not be any impact on no claim bonus (NCB), if such claims do not exceed ₹ 50,000 per year.
Discounts are offered in Max Bupa Senior First Health Policy
It offers two discounts:
1) Tenure Discount – Under this, if the policy is taken for more than 1 year, tenure discount is provided. If one takes two year policy, there is a 7.5 % discount on 2nd year premium. Similarly, if one takes 3 year policy, there would be an additional discount of 15% on 3rd year premiums.
2) Standing Instruction Discount – One can provide standing instruction for auto debit of renewal premium and get 2.5% discount on renewal premiums.
What are the standard exclusions in this health insurance plan?
Here are the major exclusions in the policy
1) Expenses relating to investigation and evaluation only
2) Obesity and weight control expenses
3) Expenses relating to change of gender treatments
4) Expenses relating to cosmetic and plastic surgery
5) Expense for treatment of hazardous or adventure sports
6) Treatment for alcoholism, drugs etc.
7) Expenses relating to unproven treatments
8) Maternity expenses
Please read the complete exclusions in the policy document of Max Bupa Senior First.
Positive Factors in Max Bupa Senior First Health Insurance
1) Re-Assure benefit, day-1 health check-ups etc., are good features in this health insurance plan.
2) Optional benefit like Co-Payment reduction from 50% to either 40% or 30% or 20% is also useful for senior citizens.
3) Basic health insurance plan features like hospitalization expenses, pre-hospitalization expenses, post hospitalization expenses etc., are covered.
4) This plan offers various discounts either for 2 years or 3 year plan and also for standing instructions for auto debit of renewal policies.
5) It offers a Gold Plan and Platinum Plan, which has some common and some distinct features. One can choose a plan based on their need.
6) Company indicates 30 minutes cashless claim processing across 7,000 network hospitals.
Negative Factors in Max Bupa Senior First Health Insurance
Here are some negative or hidden factors in this health insurance policy.
1) Higher copayment of 50%
2) 10% additional co-payment applicable if the treatment is taken in higher room category compared to eligible category.
3) There is an initial 30 days waiting period, 24 months waiting period for pre-existing diseases and 24 months waiting period for specific diseases.
4) Gold Plan offers limited features like sum assured up to 10 lacs, sharing room, No NCB, No Re-Assure Benefit and no Health checkups.
5) The annual aggregate deductible would be 1/5 of the sum assured chosen.
6) While health checkups offered from day-1, these should be taken within 7 days from the date of the policy or renewal of the policy.
Also Read: Best Health Insurance Policies in India
Should you opt Max Bupa Senior First Health Insurance?
Max Bupa Senior First policy comes with nice features. However, there are several negative factors too. There is no straight Yes/No answer whether one should opt for this health insurance plan. One should look at their needs, features, negative factors and take a decision whether it would be suitable to them or not.
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I think a very clear and crisp analysis of the Policy. Frankly speaking, a 50% co-payment is a strict no-no because there are several other policies available with better features and no/less co-payment. However, the premium is not mentioned for different age groups and therefore my comments are limited to that extent. Even if the premium is substantially less, a 50% co-payment is not acceptable.
I echo with you. Premiums would depend on age + sum insured + features which one can opt.