There are times when a health condition is not serious and does not require hospitalisation. For these minor ailments, just an OPD consultation is enough. Although it doesn’t seem like a huge expense, it surely affects one’s monthly budget and cumulatively burns a hole in your pocket in the long run because even one doctor’s consultation can cost a bomb sometimes. So, it is always a good idea to get health insurance with OPD cover as an add-on feature. But before that, what does it really mean?
What is an OPD cover?
OPD stands for out-patient department treatment. It refers to a medical treatment wherein a person visits an assisted facility such as a hospital or a consultation room for diagnosis and treatment, without needing to be hospitalized. An OPD cover is one of the types of health insurance benefits that offers coverage for the expenses incurred during a doctor’s visit or consultation, on the basis of reimbursement.
The OPD cover includes the following –
- Doctor’s consultation
- Diagnostic tests
- Investigative tests
- Medicine and pharmacy costs
Why you should have an OPD cover?
Healthcare has always been expensive, but it is increasingly becoming more so due to the rising costs and medical inflation. In this situation, even a visit to the doctor can be a financial burden, and in the long run can eat away at your savings. So, you need something that can support you and protect your savings for the time there is an actual medical emergency. This way the OPD cover will help you in managing all the costs related to doctor’s consultation – the diagnostic battery of tests, visitation fees, medicine, and pharmacy bills, and so on. Previously the OPD cover was not included in health insurance in India, but now health insurance policies offer coverage for these costs and safeguard the policyholders from medical expenses in the long-term.
This cover is a boon for anyone who incurs medical costs without being hospitalized. You might think that you don’t require OPD cover because “it’s just a doctor’s visit” but having this cover is an important part of your health insurance as well as financial planning. You want your savings to be put into actual medical crises and not on minor treatments that are too costly due to inflation. And let’s face it, there are far too many of these so-called minor doctor consultations in a lifetime. You need to plan ahead and invest in the OPD cover so you can truly save your money for a rainy day and all your other expenses are covered by the insurance company.
So, boost your health insurance plans for family by availing the OPD cover as an add-on feature and reimburse your non-hospitalization medical expenses every time you need to visit the doctor!
