There are thousands of insurances available in the market today but we are only aware of a few of them. For e.g. in the event of one’s illness, the general expectation is to have the capacity of availing the best of treatment, medical care and attention. Imagine, the patient getting calls for his credit card bill, or for that matter, if the patient receives a legal notice for a check bounce on his Home Loan. Indeed, these thoughts can be pretty agonizing and can unsettle all prospects of the patient’s recovery for he/she’ll be psychologically invested in thinking of resources to meet the ends.
A Brief History of Rehan and Ayushi’s Life:
Rehan and Ayuushi got married in 2006. The following year, they were blessed with a new member. Rehan was the only working member of the family and earned an annual package of 8 lakhs. They were a young and fun loving couple, zealous about life. Amidst all hustle and bustle, Rehan managed to save a few lakhs over 2 years for his apartment down-payment and in 2009 they shifted to the new house. He started to pay his home EMI scheduled till 2030. In 2011, Rehan was diagnosed with leukemia. The diagnosis was somehow made possible with his company’s health – insurance plan. The same year, their son was supposed to be enrolled in a school, but the fund got affected because of this unpredictable crisis. Besides treatment costs, non-medical expenses related to his treatment were soaring high. Along with all these, the house EMI was a hanging sword. Things got tougher and tougher. Within six month’s time from the diagnosis, Rehan was served a severance notice from his company and that made things even worse; the health insurance ran out. They did not have any kith or kin to turn up to for help. During this critical time, Ayushi took a bold step and moved on to accept a new job offer. Since she was an IIM alumnus, she could bag a job with decent salary. By the seventh month, she could call for hospice care and a baby-sitter for their little boy. No matter how judiciously Ayushi tried to manage the family expenses, but things were out of order. It was then, that Ayushi’s father suggested if they have a life insurance for Rehan to cover for the family needs, but it was too late to get one.
Well, this is a story for the world but a terrible reality for Ayushi who lost her husband the same year, eight months from his diagnosis. Let this not undermine your peace but offer you courage to sign up for the various health-insurance programs the market has to offer today. But before you go for it take a look at what these plans may mean for you-
Health Insurances:
In the event of your sudden sickness, a good health insurance is a big relief. It’ll ensure that your cash flow is not impacted when hospitalized.
In Rehan’s case, his company offered Health Insurance but for a limited period and that impacted his personal finance.
Emergency Fund:
You must create a separate Medical Emergency Fund to pay for non-medical expenses including but not limited to travel expenses, fees for nurses/medical attendees, lodging in case you plan to avail treatment at a far off place. Emergency Fund is also useful in situations other than medical emergencies, such as job loss. Ideally one should build a corpus of 3-6 months of household expenses.
Remember that Rehan had to be rushed to the hospital numerous times? There were associated expenses, which were taking a toll on the limited savings meant solely for Rehan’s treatment. A Medical Emergency fund is meant for such situation.
These plans provide a lump sum cash post detection of such diseases. That amount is a great boon when you may not be able to continue with your work. Also, if you have family members and other dependents, this sum helps you determine the best of treatments available in the country or abroad. However, one should take into note that the total sum expected is subject to the insurance amount.
When Rehan was diagnosed with the terminal disease, he could have availed a lump sum amount for better treatment. But he could not do so, because he never signed up for a Critical Illness Plan.
Insurance against liabilities:
This kind of insurance helps you cover up your liabilities, such a House EMI, Car Loan, Personal Loan, Credit Cards etc. This is a great security that you may want to go for to ensure absolute peace of mind when having sufficient resources of paying the dues.
What about the home loan? It wasn’t easy for Ayushi to answer calls from bank regarding check bounces when she had to focus on Rehan’s treatment. Such liabilities are covered by Liability Insurance.
Life Insurance:
In the event of your loss in the family owing to any fatal disease, this term insurance covers the various needs of the deceased’s family. A Life Insurance costs the lowest of all insurances.
Despite Ayushi’s new job, her life was fraught with various struggles connected to unplanned finances, on which she and Rehan had started their married life. There was a need for a Life insurance for Rehan, but now that he’s no more, Ayushi has ensured that both she and her son are covered by a good Life Insurance plan.
All these insurances come with various pros and cons that one should be aware of while purchasing them. It is important that the person goes through the deal sheet in details and clarifies concerns before buying it. After all, this is just to ensure a hassle free period during one’s illness to avail expedited health services and peace of mind and personal finances for the family taking care of the patient. One may also seek a personal financial advisor to ease the process of selecting the right kind of insurance.
