Before you finalize your health insurance policy, you must be well aware of the premium you’ll have to bear for the same. Health insurance premiums can get quite difficult to afford if you have to pay them as a lump sum once a year. Fortunately, IRDAI regulations now let you pay the premiums of your health insurance policy monthly by opting for the health insurance EMI option. Let’s take a closer look at how this EMI works.

Monthly EMI Health Insurance: An Overview

A health insurance EMI works just like any other EMI would. Simply put, you break up the lump sum health insurance premium into monthly payments. This makes it easy for you to afford a good health insurance policy that may have otherwise been out of your budget.

You can make the health insurance EMI payment online using credit cards, debit cards, UPI IDs, and net–banking. This helps you get the required flexibility to pay for your coverage in a manner that suits you. Furthermore, you can also select the auto–debit option and have the monthly EMI automatically debited from your linked bank account.

There are a few terms and conditions that you need to keep in mind when opting to pay for health insurance through EMIs. For instance, when you make a claim, the insurance provider may deduct the total amount of premium remaining before the expiry of the policy from the sum insured.

What Are the Benefits of Paying EMIs for Health Insurance?

There are several benefits of making a monthly payment of premium for your health insurance policy. These include:

• Increased affordability

  As monthly and quarterly payments of EMI are smaller in value than the annual premium charged by your insurer, you get to afford health insurance plans that provide a higher coverage amount. The monthly payment option also helps low–income families to get improved access to health insurance. This affordability is especially pronounced when you have to buy a costlier health insurance plan, such as a family floater plan.

• Tax benefits

  Section 80D of the Income Tax Act, 1961, provides tax deductions that can go as high as Rs 50,000 or even Rs 1 lakh for premiums paid for health insurance. The deductions can vary for those under the age of 60 years and those above 60 years. You can avail such tax benefits even if you are paying premium of your health insurance policy on a monthly basis.

• Increased awareness of health insurance in India

  As a monthly premium is lower in value than an annual premium, a larger number of people will be encouraged to buy health insurance. This way, a large segment of the population will come under the protective umbrella of health insurance as they would be able to afford coverage without having to worry about their other expenses.

Nowadays, as a result of digitization, several insurers offer a range of health insurance plans that can provide proper financial protection to you and your loved ones. You can enjoy wide coverage, affordable premiums, and easy claims by opting for a credible insurer. Make sure that your health plan covers pre–and–post–hospitalisation expenses, prescription medicines in the hospital, nursing charges, OT and intensive care charges, etc. This will further add to your savings in the long run.

Disclaimer: The above information is indicative in nature. For more details on the risk factor, terms and conditions, please refer to the Sales Brochure and Policy Wordings carefully before concluding a sale.