Ritik Gupta
Even as the demand for health insurance in the country heightened on account of the ongoing pandemic, data from insurance aggregator Policybazaar.com insinuates that purchase of health policies by the senior citizen group was lower than in other age categories.
As per the data shared by Policybazaar.com to Business Standard, the share of policies bought by the senior citizen category in the age-group 60-80 years stands at only 15 per cent, whereas the share for the younger lot in the age bracket of 18-40 years was found to be 45 per cent. This is despite the old people being indexed as more susceptible to the virus than the younger generation.
Besides, the share of health policies purchased by children for their parents stands at 12.2 per cent for the April-Dec 2020 period. Approximately 41 per cent of people in the senior citizen category who bought a cover opted for a sum assured for Rs 5 lakh. Around 24 per cent inclined toward to buy a health cover with a sum assured of Rs 5- 10 lakh. And, the higher sum insured policies of beyond Rs 20 lakh saw uptake from 20 per cent senior citizens.
Amit Chhabra, Business Head – Health, Policybazaar.com said, “The main reason for lower uptake of health policies among senior people is awareness. They are not aware that they can get health insurance at that age”.
“Affordability is another major concern and this is all the more applicable to retired people. They don’t think they can afford a health insurance policy”, he added.
Nevertheless, with the regulator authorizing payment of insurance premiums via EMIs, it has become more inexpensive for a vast section of the population to have the money for health insurance.
Experts moreover pointed, the fact that during the pandemic, due to the constraints on activity, the agency force was not as vigorous as they are otherwise. Furthermore, generally, it has been discerned that people in the senior age group need aid when it comes to investing in insurance products.
“We are seeing a trend now where children are buying comprehensive health insurance plans for their parents so that remain covered at senior age”, Chhabra added.
Source: Business Standard
