Introduction

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

Both products are marketed by different insurance companies. Family Health Protector is sold by Iffco Tokio 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 have massive differences in their core structure. Family Health Protector is quite basic. It offers little protection and it’s a generic policy that anybody could pick off the shelf. However, National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy is specifically designed for senior citizens. So in many ways, you’re comparing apples and oranges here.

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 Family Health Protector. The product comes from Iffco Tokio’s stable:

Iffco Tokio is a joint venture between Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Limited (IFFCO), a government-owned fertilizer company, and Japan-based Tokio Marine Group. They have a sizable presence in many rural markets, however, their presence in urban areas isn't exactly extraordinary.

The company has a network of over 7,527 hospitals and its CSR ratio isn’t useful, since they have been settling a lot of pending claims from last year.


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 hospitals7,5277,012
Claim settlement ratio

(avg. of last 3 years)

99.94%94.14%
Co-payment

No

No

Room rent

Any room

Any Room

(up to 1% of sum insured)

Disease sub-limit

Yes

No

Pre existing diseases waiting

4 years

2 years

Pre/Post hospitalization

45/60 days

30/60 days

No claim bonus

5% per year

(up to 50%)

5% per year

(up to 50%)

Domiciliary
Ayush treatments
Restoration benefit

100% restoration

(once for different illness)

Health check-up
Once every 4 years
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, Family Health Protector doesn’t impose a co-payment clause. And neither does National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy.

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, Family Health Protector lets you stay in Any room. And National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy does the same i.e. it only lets you stay in a room whose rent doesn’t exceed 1% of the sum insured.

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, Family Health Protector 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. In this case, Family Health Protector imposes a waiting period of 4 years on pre-existing diseases while National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy extends a waiting period of 2 years on existing conditions.

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, Family Health Protector covers expenses incurred 45 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. And in this case, Family Health Protector offers a no-claim bonus of 5% and National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy similarly extends a 5% no-claim bonus.

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, Family Health Protector offers domiciliary cover. And National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy also coves domiciliary expenses.

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, Family Health Protector covers Ayush procedures and National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy also extends coverage for 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 Family Health Protector 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 Family Health Protector extends coverage for outpatient consultations, nor does National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy.

Final Conclusion

If you’re specifically looking to buy a policy for senior citizens, National Senior Citizen Mediclaim policy makes a lot of sense. But considering National Insurance has a claim settlement ratio that can only be considered sub-par at best, we would still recommend going with anything that Iffco Tokio has to offer, if the policy is made available to you.

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