Often, a health insurance cover is assumed to come in handy mostly during hospitalisation. However, recognizing the need to maintain a healthy lifestyle in order to prevent the incidence of related diseases, insurers in India have included a host of added benefits in their health insurance products to guide the insured in inculcating better habits.
As a result, buying health insurance can not only help policy holders during times of emergencies, but also motivates them to adopt a diet and exercise routine to keep them fit.
Wellness programs and an on-call coach for better guidance
An innovative offering that is increasingly being coupled with health insurance; wellness programs are health initiatives that are aimed at promoting well-being. These programs focus on guiding policy holders on how to create and maintain a proper diet, develop an exercise routine and even provide tips on better stress management. Offered at no extra cost, these wellness programs are supplemented with the availability of a wellness coach who is available on call for added personalised guidance. The combination of a passive wellness program along with a wellness coach can prompt policy holders in tweaking their lifestyle and preventing the onset of many critical illnesses.
Annual health check-up provision to detect disease before it poses high risk
Even for individuals with no prior hospitalisation or incidence of any illness, there is a need to undergo periodic health assessments. Yet, most adults do not undergo annual health check-ups, unless specified by their doctor. By purchasing a health insurance cover, policy holders are entitled to a free annual health check-up in case of no hospitalisation during the policy period. This ensures that even for non-salaried individuals, a health insurance policy can help in ascertaining any imminent disorder or diagnose a critical illness at an early stage, thereby reducing the complexity or risk involved had the same being detected at a later stage.
Health educational library and dial-a-doctor features
Some insurers are leveraging their knowledge base by providing their policyholders with 24x7 online access to the same. These health educational libraries contain information about different diseases, how they propagate through the body and what changes one can make in daily life to prevent or reduce the chances of contracting them. Online health guides and videos help in understanding even complicated medical concepts or terms and even offer tips on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Additionally, features such as live chat with a health expert can support policy holders in clearing their doubts or getting tailored advice on specific ailments. Thus, such online repositories of health-related information can go a long way in motivating the insured in embracing healthier habits, assuage them about existing illnesses and even how to combat them without suffering from undue stress.
Periodic newsletters with health-related articles
One of the most common benefits that comes along with purchasing a health insurance cover is getting access to newsletters that contain nutritional information, dieting tips and access to study material that can guide policy holders in maintaining optimum health. These newsletters are shared on a weekly or monthly basis and provide information that can be very helpful in making small lifestyle changes.
Examples are simple food recipes to replace unhealthy food for people suffering from specific illnesses like diabetes, exercises that can prevent conditions like spinal dysfunction and even changes to one’s sleep cycle to improve physical and mental stress levels. What’s more, with articles written by domain experts and renowned doctors, policy holders get early access to information that would otherwise only be available in medical journals or magazines.
As can be seen, purchasing a health insurance cover is a precursor to maintaining a healthy lifestyle on account of the barrage of benefits and features that accompany it. It thus makes prudent sense to secure oneself with a health insurance cover at the earliest and make use of all services that are being offered to lead a healthier life.
Sharad Mathur, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, Universal Sompo General Insurance
