Introduction

Before we start comparing these two policies we have to set out some ground rules.

Both products are marketed by different insurance companies. Activ Care Standard is sold by Aditya Birla and National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy is sold by National Insurance. So any meaningful comparison should include a comparison of the product alongside the insurers themselves.

Second, we know that both products are built specifically for senior citizens. So you’ll have to keep that in mind while comparing the two policies.

And finally, any comparison is ultimately futile without considering the use case. Who are you buying this policy for? You, your family, your parents?

That’s something you’ll need to answer before using this guide. So with that introduction out of the way, we can get to comparing the actual policies themselves.


Let’s start with Activ Care Standard. The product comes from Aditya Birla’s stable:

The company only began operations in the year 2016 as a subsidiary of Aditya Birla Capital Ltd., which in turn happens to be a joint venture between the famed Aditya Birla Group and MMI Holdings (South Africa).

While the company boasts a claim settlement ratio of 87.54% along with a network of more than 10,051+ hospitals, do remember they’ve only been in the market for a few years now. So they don’t have an extensive track record.


National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy meanwhile comes from National Insurance’s stable:

National Insurance is the country's oldest general insurance firm and is wholly owned by the Government of India. That means, despite a claim settlement ratio of 94.14% and over 7,012 network hospitals it can be a bit difficult to reach the insurer when you need them the most. Perhaps due to the fact that they are still a public sector enterprise.

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Compare Insurances

Network hospitals10,051+7,012
Claim settlement ratio

(avg. of last 3 years)

87.54%94.14%
Co-payment

20%

No

Room rent

Shared Room

Any Room

(up to 1% of sum insured)

Disease sub-limit

Yes

No

Pre existing diseases waiting

2 years

2 years

Pre/Post hospitalization

30/60 days

30/60 days

No claim bonus

10% per year

(up to 50%)

5% per year

(up to 50%)

Domiciliary
Ayush treatments
Restoration benefit

50% restoration

(once for different illness)

Health check-up
Once every year
Maternity
Out Patient Department
Day care

Feature Comparison

co_pay

Co payment

With a co-payment clause, the insurer will mandate that you pay a part of the bill. So if the bill adds up to Rs. 2,00,000 and the co-payment is set at 20% then you could be asked to pay Rs. 40,000 from the bill. In this case, however, Activ Care Standard imposes a mandatory co-payment of 20% . And National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy doesn’t impose a co-payment clause.

room_rent

Room rent

If the policy does impose room rent restrictions then the insurer may only let you stay in a room of a certain specification or impose a cap on the total room rent. If you were to breach either criterion then the insurance company may ask you to pay a portion of all the expenses you incurred while staying in the room. In this case, Activ Care Standard lets you stay in a shared room and nothing fancy whereas National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy only lets you stay in a room whose rent doesn’t exceed 1% of the sum insured. In effect, both policies impose restrictions on the kind of room you can pick.

disease_sublimit

Sub limits

Some policies will tell you that they will cover all medical expenses up until the sum insured, but then impose caps on the total costs you can incur while dealing with a very specific list of diseases. We call these caps “Disease Wise Sub Limits.” In this case, Activ Care Standard imposes disease-wise sub-limits on null whereas National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy doesn’t impose a disease wise sub-limit.

ped

Waiting periods for pre-existing diseases:

If you’re suffering from a lifestyle condition or if you’ve had surgery in the past, or if you’re dealing with an acute or chronic illness at the time of buying the policy, then the insurer may classify this as a pre-existing disease. And they may tell you that they will only cover these illnesses after some time. This cooling period is referred to as the Pre-existing-disease waiting period. In this case, Activ Care Standard imposes a 2 year waiting period on pre-existing diseases and National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy will similarly tell you to wait 2 years before making a claim related to your pre-existing diseases

pre_post

Pre and post Hospitalization expenses

Most people aren’t hospitalized right off the bat. Instead, they’ll have to go through a whole series of diagnostic tests before hospitalization and take medication post-discharge. These costs are outlined as pre-hospitalization expenses and post-hospitalization expenses respectively. In this case, Activ Care Standard covers expenses incurred 30 days before hospitalization and expenses incurred 60 days post-hospitalization. Meanwhile, National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy covers expenses incurred 30 days before hospitalization and expenses incurred 60 after hospitalization, although there may be different sub-limits

ncb

No claim bonus

Some policies will tell you that they will incentivize you for not making a claim in any given year. And they offer such incentives by offering extra cover on top of the existing sum insured. This extra cover is categorized as a no-claim bonus. In this case, however, Activ Care Standard offers a no-claim bonus of 10% whereas National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy offers a no-claim bonus of 5%. And the no-claim bonus may be capped at different levels too.

domiciallary

Domiciliary

Imagine you are forced to treat yourself at home because you don’t find a hospital bed, or you have a chronic condition that prevents you from visiting one, then, insurers may choose to cover your treatment even if you’re hospitalized at home. And such costs are collectively categorized as domiciliary treatment costs. In this case, however, Activ Care Standard doesn’t offer domiciliary protection whereas National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy offers domiciliary cover.

ayush

Ayush treatments

Most policies only cover treatments administered in a registered medical facility. However, on some occasions, you may want to pursue alternative treatments including homoeopathy, Ayurveda, Unani and Siddha. These treatments are collectively categorized as Ayush treatments. And in this case Activ Care Standard doesn’t extend coverage for Ayush treatments whereas National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy covers Ayush treatments.

maternity

Maternity benefits

If you’re hospitalized during childbirth, then you may have to incur significant costs during delivery of your newborn, child care and other related matters during the course of the hospitalization. These costs are collectively termed maternity costs. And in this case, neither Activ Care Standard offers maternity cover nor does National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy.

opd

Out Patient Department (OPD)

Doctor visits and regular consultations aren’t usually covered by health insurance policies. They are categorized as Outpatient consultations (or OPD treatments) and patients have to bear the cost on their own. In this case, however, neither Activ Care Standard extends coverage for outpatient consultations, nor does National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy.

Final Conclusion

After considering all the features on hand and the claim settlement ratio of National Insurance, we believe that National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy is a better alternative to Activ Care Standard for most use cases that we’ve evaluated so far.

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