Will health insurance be cheaper?
In order to increase the coverage of health insurance in the country, the Insurance Regulator of India and Development Authority Irda are considering allowing life insurance companies to sell health insurance policies.
Money9: Health insurance in the country can now be cheaper. Good facility of cheap health cover (HEALTH COVER) can also be found. To increase the coverage of health insurance in the country, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India i.e. IRDA is considering allowing life insurance companies to sell health insurance policies. This is likely to reduce premiums of insurance companies and increase coverage of insurance.
Report of NITI Aayog
At present the coverage of insurance in the country is very low. A report by government think tank Niti Aayog shows that 42 crore people in India do not have any health insurance plan. This figure is approximately 30 percent of the total population of the country. The IRDA report states that the total insurance coverage in the country was only 4.2 percent in the year 2020-21. This includes 3.2 percent life insurance and 1 percent general insurance. General insurance includes health insurance, motor insurance and other insurance policies.
However, health insurance premiums are seeing a boom now. In the year 2021-22, its total premium has increased from Rs 58,572 crore to Rs 73,330 crore. If life insurance companies are allowed to sell health insurance, it can increase the number of health insurance buyers in the country. This is because these companies have a large customer base and their distribution network is also large.
Customers will benefit
The entry of these companies into the health insurance sector will also increase competition and where there is more competition, the customer will be king. So companies will be forced to introduce more attractive and cheaper plans to entice customers. According to IRDA statistics, life insurance companies have more than 25 lakh agents. These companies have tie-ups with more than 500 corporate agents. Also they have branches. Where he sells insurance policies.
Premium will decrease
Insurance expert Vikas Singhal says agents of life insurance companies have a wide reach among people. These companies also have data related to the health of customers. To increase business and attract customers, life insurance companies launch health insurance plans whose premium can be 10 percent cheaper than the average premium of a basic plan. Currently, the annual premium of health insurance up to 2 lakh rupees for a healthy person aged 18 to 50 years comes to around 5 thousand to 7 thousand rupees. If this scheme of Irda is implemented, the premium of health insurance can be reduced by 10 percent.
According to a report, approximately 70 percent of health-related expenses in the country are borne by people from their own pockets. Due to which their savings are hit. Allowing life insurance companies to sell health insurance policies will increase competition in the insurance sector, which will directly benefit consumers. Although such initiatives have taken place before, the cartel of health insurance companies did not allow it to succeed. Then the implementation of this plan will not be easy for Irda.