New India Yuva Bharat Health Policy 

New India Assurance is the largest general insurance company in the India. New India offers a wide range of health insurance products and one of their key health insurance product is the New India Yuva Bharat Health Policy, which is specifically designed to meet the needs of young Indians. As the name of policy suggests the policy is specifically designed for young people therefore you can buy this policy in a specific age group – 18 to 45 Years.

Here I have reviewed this policy terms in detail, highlighting its benefits and drawbacks.

Positive features of Yuva Bharat Health Policy 

The policy comes in three options: Base, Gold, and Platinum. The Base plan provides all the important coverages that a health insurance policy should have in general. The Platinum plan offers the widest coverages. If you’re looking for basic health insurance policy, the Base plan is enough. If you want extra covers like critical care, personal accident cover, and air ambulance, the Gold plan is a good choice. For maternity coverage, you’ll need the Platinum plan. This way, the policy gives you flexibility, so you only pay for the coverage you actually need—no extra cost for things like maternity coverage if you don’t want it.

This policy covers treatment in a standard AC room even with a sum insured as low as 5 lakhs. If you choose a cover of 25 lakhs or more, you’re eligible for treatment in a deluxe AC room. The room rent limits are quite good compared to most public sector health insurance plans, which typically cap room rent at just 1% of the sum insured.

Waiting period for pre-existing diseases that you declare and New India Assurance accepts is covered after two years. For specific diseases listed in the policy documents, the waiting period varies—90 days, 12 months, or 24 months. The policy covers diabetes, hypertension, and cardiac conditions just 90 days after the policy starts, as long as these conditions were not pre-existing before you purchased the policy. The waiting periods in this policy align with the latest IRDAI guidelines, which only a few insurance companies have adopted so far.

Policy has no co-payment on claims, except when you purchase the policy in Zone II(rest of India) and receive treatment in Zone I (Delhi, NCR, Mumbai, Mumbai Suburban, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Surat, Ahmedabad, and Vadodara).

Policy covers expenses for organ transplants not only for the policyholder who receives the organ but also for the organ donor. Only a few health insurance policies offer coverage for the donor’s expenses in addition to those of the policyholder.

The policy is clear and straightforward about what it covers and excludes. It includes coverage for congenital and genetic disorders, puberty and menopause-related issues, age-related macular degeneration (ARMD), mental illness, and artificial life maintenance in cases of a vegetative state. These coverages are rare in health insurance, but this policy offers them—though there’s a waiting period and specific limits also apply. The terms are easy to understand, even for someone without much insurance knowledge.

This policy covers hazardous sports activities, which are usually excluded by other health insurance plans, however there is a specific limit on the coverage.

Policy includes features that enhance your coverage during the policy period, such as reinstatement of the sum insured, automatic top-up of the sum insured, and a cumulative bonus for claim-free years.

If you choose the maternity cover under this policy, it’s very comprehensive. It includes delivery expenses, infertility treatment if needed, well-baby care (covering pre-term baby costs and vaccinations), and Birth Right benefits. This means if your child or newborn is diagnosed with certain disorders during the policy period, a lump sum amount will be paid. To access this coverage, you need to select the Platinum plan.

There are no hidden terms for loading on the premium when you buy or renew the policy. The conditions for premium loading and discounts are clearly stated. The maximum loading is only 2.5% and applies only under three specific conditions: hypertension(>139/89), diabetes(Hb1Ac >6.4) , and BMI(>32) . This is important because, while many health insurance policies claim no loading based on claims experience at renewal, they may include risk-based loading terms to get around IRDAI regulations.

Clarity on Enhancing Sum Insured at Renewal: Many health insurance policies don’t clearly address how to increase the sum insured at renewal if the policyholder finds it inadequate. Insurance companies use their discretion and don’t provide specific criteria for such requests. However, this policy clearly outlines the conditions under which a request for increasing the sum insured can be considered

Policy is priced affordably and competitively. For a 25 lakh cover under the base plan, the premium is just ₹21,152 (excluding GST). It becomes even more cost-effective if you choose a family floater option.

Concerns regarding restrictions

1. Reinstatement of sum insured: Policy includes features like sum insured restoration or reinstatement, but this feature has some restrictions like restored sum insured can only be used once per policy period, and only for illnesses or injuries different from the one for which you’ve already claimed.

For example, if you have a ₹10 lakh policy and use the entire amount for cancer treatment, the sum insured will be restored to ₹10 lakh, but you cannot use this restored amount for further cancer treatment during the same policy period.

This restoration feature is only available for individual plans, not family floater options, and does not apply to modern treatments.

However, to address this gap, the policy includes an auto top-up feature. This provides an additional 10% of your sum insured after the original amount is exhausted, even for the same illness or condition you’ve previously claimed for. So, in the earlier example, you would get an additional ₹1 lakh for cancer treatment, but only once during the policy period.

2. Cumulative Bonus: The policy rewards claim-free renewals with a 10% increase in the sum insured, up to a maximum of 30%. However, if you make a claim, the bonus reduces by the same percentage. While the maximum bonus of 30% is on the lower side compared to the industry standard of a 100% bonus on the sum insured, which is common in many health insurance policies.

3. Coverage for Health Check-up: The policy reimburses health check-up expenses once every two years, but only if you haven’t made a claim. Many health insurance policies offer annual check-ups, and some even cover them regardless of claims. So, this benefit feels a bit restrictive by comparison.

4. Modern treatment cover: The policy covers all 12 modern treatment methods, but with some sub-limits. While these limits seem reasonable, other policies, like Oriental Insurance Youth Eco Care, offer these treatments without restrictions at higher sum insured options. For higher sums like 25 lakh or 50 lakh, it would have been better if there were no limits at all.

5. Cataract expenses are also capped in this policy, however capped limits are quite reasonable and adequate but it would have been better if there were no restrictions on these expenses for higher sum insured options like 25 lakh and 50 lakh.

gameofinsurance rating of New India Yuva Bharat Health Policy 

It’s fair to say that this policy offers very comprehensive coverage, including aspects like mental illness that many other health insurance policies don’t cover yet.

Although the IRDAI has issued guidelines in 2022 for covering mental illness in all health insurance policies, many companies have been slow to adopt these guidelines. Many other policies are either silent or unclear about mental illness coverage, which highlights the commitment of New India assurance to follow regulatory guidelines.

Additionally, the maximum waiting period for any condition under this policy is just 24 months, which is quite reasonable.

This policy is designed to attract younger people to buy health insurance because they are generally healthier than older individuals. As a result, the premiums are kept affordable and attractive for them. Insurance companies often maintain these policies for a long time, and any future premium increases are usually kept within reasonable limits because these policies are profitable and have fewer claims from healthier younger customers. In contrast, other health insurance policies might be replaced by new ones or see larger premium hikes each year.

Given its alignment with regulatory guidelines, the reputation of New India Assurance as a leading general insurer, and the comprehensive nature of the policy, it’s a solid choice for those looking to buy health insurance at a young age.