There are many changes coming day by day in the healthcare industry with the advance of technology, so making it possible for people to access quality health services is becoming important to save people time and effort when they need any of the required treatments. And based on this revolutionary idea, cashless insurance comes into play as one of the benefits of health insurance.
In this article, we will learn what cashless health insurance is and its critical elements.
What Is Cashless Insurance For Health?
Cashless insurance Health insurance is a service provided by a medical insurance policy that allows policyholders to receive medical treatment without having to pay any medical expenses upfront. In this situation, your insurance company settles the medical claim and expenses directly with their network hospital for the health care provider. As a result, the policyholder doesn’t have to worry about making any of the hustle of making any payment on the spot.
Important Elements of Cashless Health Insurance
There are some of the following critical elements of cashless health insurance:
- Network Hospitals: Network hospitals are those hospitals that have tie-ups with your insurance company. In these tie-up hospitals, the policyholder can avail of medical treatment when required without worrying about making payment for the expenses. In this hospital, send the bill directly to the insurance company. Thus, it is important to check your network hospitals before purchasing cashless insurance, as you will have to visit them should a medical emergency arise.
- Pre-Authorization: A critical element of cashless Health insurance is a process where the policyholder has to inform the company before getting admitted to a hospital for any treatments. Once the insurance company approves the medical treatment based on your health insurance policy details, coverage, and terms, you will receive free authorization from the insurance company, allowing you to obtain medical services without any payment or hassle. You must complete this process to ensure your claim is accepted.
- Coverage: The other critical point of cashless health insurance is the insurance company’s coverage for cashless medical treatment. It can be different depending on the policy terms and conditions, so before proceeding to buy any medical insurance policy, you have to check the coverage offered by the insurance company, which should be adequate according to your healthcare needs.
- Premium: The premium is the amount the policyholder has to pay to get coverage in the exchange. It is recurring in nature, and you must pay it timely to continue your health insurance policy. So to avail yourself of the cashless health insurance facility or policy, you should also be aware of the premium you have to pay.
- Types of claims: There are two different types of claims you can make with the cashless health insurance policy. The first is a planned claim, in which you have to tell the insurance company in advance about taking any medical treatment, and the second is an emergency claim, which can arise in case of any emergency, like an accident, an attack, or more. In this case, you can take that treatment first, but you should notify your insurance company within a certain period, which varies according to each insurance provider’s policy.
- Claim process: To avail yourself of the cashless medical treatment, you must contact your insurance company immediately. You must present your original ID and submit the necessary documents and medical reports for investigation. And you have to give complete and accurate information in a prescribed format to the insurance company; if they do everything correctly, they will provide a claim according to your policy.
- Rejection of cashless insurance claims: If any of the following circumstances occur, your claim may be rejected by the insurance company: you did not meet the proper documentation requirements; you did not notify them on time; you exhausted the sum insured for that period; there was a specific illness that was not covered in the medical policy; and so on. In some cases, they can also reject your claim, so you should read all the details carefully before purchasing a cashless health insurance plan and ensure you can follow them without any conflicts.
What Are The Benefits Of Cashless Health Insurance?
There are many benefits to cashless health insurance, such as:
- It provides hassle-free medical treatment.
- You don’t have to pay any of the medical bills upfront.
- The insurance companies settle claims with the hospital themselves.
- Offering wide coverage of medical treatments and procedures allows access to quality healthcare services.
- Provides flexibility and convenience to policyholders by allowing them to choose from a network of hospitals that have a tie-up with the insurance company to provide cashless medical services.
- It gives financial security, as in the case of medical emergencies, the policyholders can avail themselves of medical treatment without worrying about the financial burden.
Conclusion
Cashless health insurance helps you manage health care expenses and provides a hassle-free experience to avail of the best possible medical services near you. However, the policyholder should also be aware of the critical elements of a cashless insurance policy to leverage the maximum benefits and make an informed decision while choosing the right cashless health insurance plan.
