Have you ever noticed how inadvertently the word ‘Group’ and all its applied implications, connotations, make such a huge part of our lives? No matter how you look at things whether you identify as an individualist or a conformist. We are all at the end of the day a part of something or the other and that’s what a group is.
One can say the group is belongingness and that in itself is beautiful and necessary. Another amazing factor is we all get to make our choices and we can choose what groups we belong to. Now I cannot presume to know or tell everything one should decide for in their life, but there is one group I can guarantee we all should choose to be a part of when the opportunity presents itself – vis a vis Group Health Insurance plan.
Is group health insurance an investment?
We all know what a health insurance policy is, but mainly there are 2 categories: group and individual. Today we are discussing the former one. Individual health insurance policy refers to the ones a person buys for themselves or their family, whereas, on the other hand, group health insurance policies are the bulk policies that an employer buys to cover their employees.
A group health insurance policy offers the same terms and conditions of coverage to all the members covered under one group. For an organization to get a group policy usually it requires 70% population (members) to be covered. These days most organizations offer some or other group health plan to their employees as part of the benefits included in the compensation packages. In many developed countries offering these benefits is a mandate for organizations, however, opting for them or not remains a choice for employees.
And that is where I shall make a case for group health insurance policies and present them to you, but before we do that let’s answer a very important question, does having a group health insurance plan eliminate the need to have individual health insurance?
Is employer health insurance enough? To be blunt the answer is a Big No, one still needs to cover themselves and we shall get into that discussion on some other day, but for now, let’s talk about the group health insurance plan.
Even though one needs to have an individual plan, group health insurance policies are still important and a good investment.
Employee Insurance – is group health insurance enough for individual
11 reasons to invest in group health insurance:
1.The rates on these things are amazing. Since these are bulk policies the premium amount is subsidized and will be much lower than your individual plan. Also, in some cases, if you are the only one covered you may not even have to pay a premium as they are already a part of your CTC
2.Talking in monetary terms, the premium on these is also applicable for tax rebates and tax benefits, just like any other investment, saving you a few more bucks.
3.Next, the coverage on these things starts from day 1 and you do not have to wait any certain amount of time before making a claim.
4.Another pretty part is everyone is eligible, there are no medical tests required and everyone gets similar benefits.
5.Most group health insurance plans offer coverage not just for yourself but for your families too. You know after a certain age we cannot cover our parents in individual policies, but most group policies let you cover your older parents too.
6. Additionally, these policies do not have a pre-existing disease clause. In most individual policies one must wait a certain time (1 to 3 years) for being able to get coverage for a pre-existing illness. But all diseases pre-existing or new-found are covered under most group health insurance policies from the start.
7. Anybody who has filed a claim before knows that the paperwork can sometimes (many times) be a nightmare, but in group health policies, companies often provide designated people or groups to handle these situations (paperwork, questions, or queries) making it seamless or better in the least.
8.Did you know that maternity charges aren’t always covered in individual health policies? That’s a bummer but that is not the case with group health insurance plans.
9.Oh! Did I mention you get ambulance charges covered too in group health plans?
10.Most of the group health insurance plans can be availed cashless at the partner firms.
11. Lastly, it may seem far-fetched, but they help employees & employers form better relations and add to the motivation factor.
Who should invest in group health insurance? YOU! Well, I hope now you see where I am going with this, and I have hopefully convinced you to invest in a group health insurance plan. Anybody who has the option should opt for it. After all, you know what they say – “Do more than just belong: participate.”
Group Health