Mumbai: The country’s largest insurer New India Assurance Company has launched a global mediclaim policy that will cover hospitalisation expenses for treatments like cancer, neurosurgery, hearty surgery, organ and bone marrow transplants in hospitals outside India.
“Although India is fairly advanced when it comes to medical treatment, there are people who are keen on obtaining specialised treatment abroad and we decided to come out with a plan for this segment,” said New India Assurance chairman G Srinivasan.
The policy is available to anyone with a domestic health insurance cover of Rs 8 lakh and above from any company. However, a cover from New India gets a 5% discount. The insured can choose between a $500,000 cover for treatment in Asia or a $1-million cover for worldwide treatment. This is subject to a lifetime limit of $2 million.
The premium for a 30-year-old starts from Rs 9,003 and Rs 11,453 for Asia and worldwide covers, respectively, and can go up to Rs 16,006 and Rs 20,906. Like in overseas mediclaim policies, the premium will be collected in rupees and the claims settled directly with hospitals abroad. However, unlike overseas mediclaim, the global cover is available for those who are living in India.The cover starts once domestic treatment commences. Global medical centres like Cedar-Sinai Medical Center, John Hopkins Medical Center and Kings College Hospital are among the 99 top-notch hospitals worldwide that are part of New India’s empanelled hospitals.
New India requires the insured to obtain a second opinion from one of the world-leading medical centres. In addition to providing cashless treatment, the policy covers travel cost up to $3,000 per person. In addition to the insured, the policy covers the travel cost of a companion as well.
