Why COVID-19 calls for a review of your existing health policy
While you do your best to preempt the spread of Covid, prepare for the worst by ensuring you have adequate Health Insurance Cover
Image Credit : Bajaj Allianz General Insurance
Reports of the first COVID-19 cases emerged in December 2019 in Wuhan, a city in the Hubei province of China. Subsequently, since the beginning of 2020, the world has been grappling with the rapid spread of this new strain of coronavirus, which is also called Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). By mid-March, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared COVID-19 to be a global pandemic. According to the World Health Organization, globally, as of 21 May 2020, there have been 49,04,413 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 323,412 deaths. In India, as of 21 May 2020, there have been 1,12,359 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 3,435 deaths.
While the race for a vaccine is on, there are genuine concerns amongst the international medical fraternity that it may not be able to extinguish the threat of this disease permanently, at least in the near future. This is due to fears that the virus is mutating to produce different strains around the globe, making it a challenge to discover a single vaccine that can provide complete immunity to all citizens of the world. A sudden spike in cases reported in Japan, China, Hong Kong, Singapore and other countries have also endorsed the possibility of a second wave of contagion. As the disease gets more complex, so does finding vaccines and cures. Some scientists and healthcare experts conclude that the base-line solution to this crisis would be the development of herd immunity, which implies that the pandemic may be here to stay for a while.
While there is currently no certain cure or vaccine for the disease, doctors are administering symptomatic treatment to those that are infected and suffering from it. Fortunately, supportive care for patients could be effective. However, this entails considerable costs, which vary from patient to patient, based on the symptoms, extent of progression of the disease, presence of other ailments, age, etc. While the Indian government is offering free of cost treatment to those affected, public facilities are overburdened with cases. The the rapid spread of the disease has left the world with little or no time to create adequate amenities for containment and care of the afflicted.
Health Insurance Policy to The Rescue
In order to avail more comfortable and attentive healthcare within their vicinity, many are opting for private facilities even though it entails bearing a considerable financial burden. This is where health insurance policies are playing a big role! Fortunately, a recent circular “IRDAI/HLT/REG/CIR/054/03/2020” dated 04-03-2020 by the insurance regulator, IRDA has clarified and confirmed that Coronavirus is covered in Mediclaim policies.
It has mandated that where hospitalization is covered in a product, insurers must expeditiously handle cases related to coronavirus disease. It has also stipulated that the costs of admissible medical expenses during the course of treatment, including the treatment during the quarantine period, should be settled in accordance with the terms and conditions of the insurance policy contract and the extant regulatory framework. Last, but not the least, the regulator has directed that all the claims reported under COVID 19 must be thoroughly reviewed by the claims review committee before rejecting any.
