By Dheeraj Agrawal Communication Professional
One of the most lethal pandemics of recent times, Covid-19 has put everyone across the globe at great risk. Not having a vaccine makes the disease more serious and scary. It is crippling the global health system and the complete treatments can cost you a bomb. And with cases increasing in multiples each day, almost everyone is in the fear of the infection.
It is therefore wise to get yourself insured against the disease and have your treatment and hospital expenses covered. Insurance companies have rolled two Corona specific policies- Corona Kavach and Corona Rakshak based on the guidelines of Indurance Regulatory and Development Authority- IRDAI. The guiding principle is to have a standardised health policy which will cover corona related expenses like the personal protective equipment kit(PPE), masks and if you have to be treated at home then this policy will have provision for home treatment as well.
Two more benefit of having Corona policy in place is – the no-claim bonus on your existing health policy won’t be immediately affected and you don’t have to pay lifetime premiums for it as these policies are short-term policies.These policies are being issued for 3 and a half month, 6 and a half month and 9 and a half month.
Corona Kavach Insurance
The Corona Kavach, also known as Covid Kavach, is an indemnity-type insurance policy benefiting individuals and families. An Indemnity-type policy protects you against unexpected and sudden medical expenses. It lets you take treatment in any hospital and reimburse the hospitalization charges, up to the insured sum.
The Corona Kavach, this Standard Health Policy needs to be compulsorily offered by all general and health insurance companies. Life Insurance companies can’t offer it.
The minimum sum insured for Corona Kavach policy is Rs 50,000 and the maximum sum insured could be up to Rs. 5 lakh. This policy offers a ‘Hospital daily cash’ benefit. This add-on will pay 0.5% of the sum insured per day, up till 15 days, for every 24 hours completed under hospitalisation.
The policy covers all the expenses including, PPE kit, gloves, mask, ventilator and ICU charges, the cost of oximeter and oxygen cylinder, etc. The cover can be taken for individuals, spouse, parents, parents-in-law, and dependent children, who are not more than the age of 25.
The cover can be taken for 3.5 months or 6.5 months, or 9.5 months and is valid till March 2021. The premium rates may vary from company to company.
Corona Rakshak Insurance
The Corona Rakshak, or Covid Rakshak policy is a defined benefit-plan offering fixed compensation upon the diagnosed being hospitalised. The policy will be effective when the policy holder is hospitalised for a minimum of 72-hours. A defined benefit plan does not require submission of any hospital bills and you are paid a pre-defined lump sum amount as per the plan.
The Corona Rakshak policy doesn’t offer dependent benefits and can be availed individually only. It is available for people between the age of 18 and 65. Applicants with comorbidity can also be insured by paying an additional premium.
Both General Insurance Companies and Standalone Health insurance providers can offer Corona Rakshak medical insurance products.
The minimum sum insured for Corona Rakshak is Rs. 50,000 and the maximum limit is Rs.2.5 lakh. Just like Corona Kavach policy this could also be taken for 3 and a half month, 6 and a half month or 9 and a month.
Difference Between the 2 Corona Policies
| Corona Kavach Policy | Corona Rakshak Policy | |
| Policy type | Indemnity based | Defined benefit plan |
| Minimum Hospitalisation | 24 hour | 72 hour |
| Who could take? | Individual & Family | Only Individual |
| Sum Insured | Rs 50,000 to Rs 5 lakh | Rs 50,000 to Rs 2.5 lakh |
| Co-morbidity condition due to pre-existing disease | Covered | Covered |
Depending upon your age and the time tenure of the policy your premium may differ from insurer to insurer. A 3 and a half month policy of 2.5 lakh sum insured for a 30 year old could be of around Rs 600-800 premium but the same policy for a 40 year plus individual could cost him anywhere between Rs 2500-3500.
Both the policies, have a waiting period of 15-days and pre-medical screening is not required to sign up for these.
Whether you should take a separate policy or not?
If you already have a health insurance policy with a good coverage then you are fine not taking a separate policy. Probably you could get a top-up or a super top-up on your existing plan. But if you feel that the cover of existing policy may not be sufficient then do check out one of the Corona policies.
