Top Cancer Insurance Policies:
What you should know

Cancer is one of the fastest rising critical illnesses in the country. The cost of cancer treatment is so high that the customer’s insurance policy often falls short of providing enough coverage. This has resulted in a new trend of people opting for cancer insurance policies. Cancer insurance policies focus on protecting the customer from the fallout of hugely expensive bills for cancer treatment.

Do you need a Cancer Insurance policy?

What does a Cancer Insurance policy typically cover and not cover?

Is a Cancer Insurance policy the same as a Critical Illness policy?

Which Cancer Insurance policy should you buy?

Do you need a Cancer Insurance Policy?

The answer to this question depends on two factors. First is your existing level of coverage. Cancer treatment costs can run into crores and the costs can vary depending on the type of cancer (some, like skin cancer cost a lot), the stage at which the cancer is detected (the later the stage, the more expensive the treatment) as well as your city, hospital, doctor etc. But typically, for the most widely occurring cancers like breast, lung, oral, cervical and stomach cancers, the costs are in the range of 25-50 lacs median. This is a rough estimate for a year of treatment, comprising of diagnostics/biopsy, surgery, radiation therapy sessions, and rehabilitation. If your health insurance is not at least 50 lacs, we would recommend that either you upgrade your insurance policy or buy a specific cancer cover.

The other factor you should consider for evaluating your need for a Cancer Insurance policy is your risk profile. If you have had cancer in your family, live in a polluted place, are obese and lead an inactive life the chances of cancer are high. This is not to say that cancer is a surety. Even the fittest people leading the best possible life can get cancer. It’s a game of probabilities.

What does a cancer insurance policy typically cover and what it does not?

Cancer insurance policies are designed keeping in mind the expenses incurred in the treatment of cancer. Cancer insurance policies will not only cover hospital expenses like a normal health policy but also cover the associated costs of diagnostics, biopsy, chemotherapy sessions, and rehabilitation. What you need to understand is that while some of these procedures are also covered under a normal health policy, there are sublimits around how much payment can be made against such procedures. A Cancer Insurance plan has much higher coverage for these procedures as compared to a general health policy. It must also be kept in mind that health insurance policies are typically floater in nature i.e. they are meant to cover not only one person but the entire family. In case of high expenses associated with cancer, there are high chances that you could end up exhausting the entire sum assured on one person, leaving the rest of the family uncovered. It is for this reason we recommend that a Cancer Insurance policy is a good addition to your regular health insurance policies.

Typically, a Cancer Insurance policy will have a waiting period ranging from a few months to a couple of years. This is the FIRST exclusion that you should understand. It means that the only cancer to be covered under the new policy will be the one diagnosed after the waiting period is over. The SECOND type of exclusion in cancer insurance policies is the type of treatment covered. Typically, new, unproven and expensive procedures are not covered in a cancer policy. For example, stem cell therapy for blood cancer was not covered in cancer insurance plans till a few years ago. However, as stem cell therapy has proven beneficial and less expensive, some insurers have started covering it. THIRD type of exclusion that you should be aware of is the survival period. This means that the person should be alive for a certain period, as defined in the policy, after the diagnosis of cancer.

Is a Cancer Insurance policy the same as a Critical Illness policy?

It is important to note that a Cancer insurance policy is different from a critical illness policy. There are two important ways in which Cancer insurance operates differently. Critical Illness policy typically does not cover one illness. It covers a group of illnesses ranging from 5 to 32.  Typically, critical illness policy is a defined benefit policy which means that the payout, in the event of cancer, is fixed in advance. Unlike a Cancer Insurance plan, the payout is not dependent on the hospital bill. These two factors, a fixed nature of the payout plus higher number of diseases covered, make Critical Illness policies relatively more expensive.

The purpose of a Critical Illness policy is also different from Cancer Insurance Policy. Unlike a Cancer Insurance policy, which focuses on protecting the customers from hospital and treatment bills, critical illness policies seek to cover the income and economic loss that a customer faces in case of a serious ailment.

Which Cancer policy should you buy?

One way is to buy a regular cancer insurance policy. At the end of the article, you will find some of the cancer insurance policies that are available in the market. The best cancer plan in the country with the best price and benefits along with support for medicines and diagnostic tests is offered by Carepal Secure. It not only offers cancer insurance but also guarantees financial stability.

Cancer Insurance plans available