Group Health Insurance (GHI) is a type of health insurance plan that provides coverage to a specific group of people such as employees of a company or members of an organization. Also known as a corporate health insurance policy, the insurance coverage under this health insurance policy usually includes accidental hospitalization, COVID insurance, daily hospital benefit, critical illness cover, maternity coverage, etc.
Why Is Group Health Insurance Required?
These days organizations are becoming more employee-centric than before and hence they offer health insurance plans to its employees. Some of the reasons why group health insurance plans are required and beneficial for both employers and employees are:
Wide Coverage and Better Benefits: Most of the group health insurance plans provide wide coverage and elaborated benefits to the policyholders.
Option to Get Customize Cover: The health insurance policies for groups and corporate give the option to customize coverage. For example, an employer can take a plan that provides maternity cover or OPD coverage.
Affordable Premiums: Comparing individual health insurance plans with group health insurance in terms of premiums shows groups health plan as affordable. This is because the premiums that one has to pay in respect of coverage that one gets is always higher in group health plans
Features of Group Health Insurance Plans
There are several groups or corporate health insurance policies available in the market.Listed below are some common features present in all employee health insurance plans:
Employee health insurance companies typically cover medical benefits for insured (self), spouse, children and dependent parents
Some health insurance providers cover pre-existing illness and maternity as well
Employee health insurance offers cashless hospitalization at network hospitals
Group health insurance can cover ancillary charges such as ambulance costs too.
Some employee health insurance policies provide fee reimbursements of specialists and other medical practitioners for follow checkups
Advantages of Group Health Insurance Policies
Employees are the treasured part of any organization. These days more and more companies are becoming employee-centric and corporate health insurance has emerged as one of the most preferred benefits to lure new talent. It plays a crucial role in influencing the psychology of an employee. It makes him feel part of a company and thus, it curtails employee attrition rate and unrest in labor unions. Moreover, it increases their productivity which increases profitability of a business. Special insurance schemes where families are also covered for benefits make employees faithful towards their employers. Moreover, by offering coverage to your employees, you become eligible to get tax deductions under Income Tax Act. So group or Corporate health insurance policy is a win-win situation for both employees and employers.
Advantages for Employers:
Helps in Employee Retention: In this modern era when there are a lot of jobs in all the fields, employee retention has become a difficult task. However, if the employer provides benefits like health insurance coverage to all its employees and his/her families as well, then the chances of an employee staying in the company increase.
Tax Benefits: As mentioned above both employer and employees are the beneficiaries in a health insurance plan for the group, thus the employer also gets tax benefits for providing such policies to its employees.
Motivated Employees: Today, when the medical costs are at its peak, having a corporate health insurance plan, motivates employees.
Better Benefits in Low Cost: Health insurance for employees provide better benefits in comparatively lesser cost than individual health insurance policy
Advantages for Employees:
Pre-Existing Disease is Covered from Day 1: Unlike any individual health plan, a group health insurance policy starts covering pre-existing diseases from the day an employee joins the organization. In this way, there is no waiting period for any pre-existing disease.
An Extensive Range of Coverage with No Limited on Diseases: Apart from covering pre-existing diseases, a group health insurance plan for employees provides a wider coverage with no limit on diseases.
Larger Maternity Coverage: A wider maternity cover is one of the best advantages given to young employees. Most of these plans provide coverage for both C-section and normal deliveries. Some plans as well cover the newborn babies without a standard 90 days of maternity cover
Group Health Insurance Inclusions
The common inclusions that most of the group health insurance plans provide to its policyholders are:
Pre-existing diseases are covered from day one.
Maternity cover is provided in all the group health insurance plans; however, some has a waiting period of 9 months whereas some do not.
The infant is covered from the day of his/her delivery.
Some plans also cover ambulance charges.
Pre and post-hospitalization expenses.
Domiciliary and daycare expenses.
Fees of a medical practitioner and specialists.
Room rent and nursing charges.
Anesthesia, oxygen, blood, OT charges, medicines, drugs, and cost of diagnostic such as x-ray, etc.
Some plans also cover radiotherapy, chemotherapy, pacemaker cost, etc.
Group Health Insurance Exclusions
The common exclusions that all the plans under this category have been:
Some policies do not cover the parents of the employee.
Non-allopathic treatments like homeopathy, Ayurveda, etc. are not covered.
The validity of a corporate health insurance policy for employees is always limited and is valid only until the employee works with the organization.
Congenital diseases and all the expenses incurred in the treatment of AIDS and other related alignments.
Alignment or complications arising out of the use or abuse of alcohol or drug.
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