Media reports suggest dengue cases have been rising across the country—in Maharashtra, Punjab, Delhi National Capital Region (NCR), and so on. Those who don’t have a comprehensive health insurance policy should quickly purchase a policy that covers vector-borne diseases like dengue, malaria, and chikunguniya. Treatment of these diseases can require hospitalisation and the bill can be hefty in serious cases.

How do they work?

Both individual and floater plans are available. Direct relatives such as a spouse, kids and dependent parents can be included in the floater plan. Sometimes there is an upper age limit for the eldest person (usually 65).

These policies are easy to obtain since no medical testing is required.

Be aware of exclusions

Most such policies come with certain exclusions which the insured needs to be aware of. “The insurer will not make a payout if a claim is made during the initial waiting period of 15-30 days after the purchase,” says Naval Goel, founder and chief executive officer (CEO), PolicyX.com. Diseases other than those listed in the policy are not covered. Claims are not paid for treatment taken on an outpatient basis. Hospitalisation of less than 24 hours may also not be considered for the claim.

Inexpensive covers

The sum insured on these plans is usually not very large and the premium is affordable. Iffco Tokio General Insurance’s MOS-BITE Protector Policy offers a maximum sum insured of Rs 1 lakh for which the annual premium is Rs 832 (plus GST). Bajaj Allianz offers M Care Policy for which the maximum sum insured is Rs 25000 and the annual premium is Rs 320 (plus GST). These premium rates are for a 30-year-old, non-smoker male based in Delhi (source: Policyx.com).

Who should buy?

These policies are disease-specific covers. Their major shortcoming is that they cover you against a limited number of diseases only. “One dilemma the customer faces in buying such covers is which diseases to cover, given the wide spectrum of diseases that occur in our country,” says Priya Deshmukh Gilbile, chief operating officer, ManipalCigna Health Insurance. She suggests buying a comprehensive health cover that can offer protection against a large spectrum of infections, including vector-borne diseases.

A person who already has a comprehensive insurance policy need not purchase a separate plan to cover vector-borne diseases. “All comprehensive insurance plans offer coverage for seasonal infections and diseases wherein they pay for the hospitalisation expense, along with pre- and post-hospitalisation expenses as well,” says Goel.

Those who don’t have a comprehensive health plan, can’t afford them, or are unable to obtain such a cover, should definitely consider purchasing a cover for vector-borne diseases. Especially people who live in parts of the country where the incidence of such diseases tends to be high should buy this policy.

Buy adequate sum insured, especially if you are buying a floater policy, as the cost of treatment for such diseases can exceed Rs 1 lakh in severe cases.

Points to check when buying

·The number of diseases covered can vary from one policy to another

·Check whether the sum insured offered by the insurer is adequate for the needs of your family

·If you wish to buy a floater cover, check how many family members can be covered, whether parents can be included (sometimes only spouse and children are permitted), and maximum entry age for the eldest member

·Sometimes these policies come as a group cover, say, users of an app can get such a policy by paying a small premium; check whether diseases covered and sum insured are adequate in such group covers

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