Senior Citizen - Super Top Up Options

Yes, it is better to enhance health insurance coverage for your parents via a super top-up plan. You can look at stand alone Health Insurers like Manipal Cigna, Aditya Birla Health, Religare & Star Health for options. They usually offer a wider variety of health plans (including top-ups) at all ages.

You can prune your choice using the following suggestions -

1) It's advisable to buy separate super top-up plans for your father & mother. This could save some premium for you every year.

2) If your base cover is for 5 L, choose a deductible option of about 4 L in your super top-up option. This ensures that your out of pocket expenses are minimal in case of bigger claims.

3) Compare your product options on aggregator websites like Policybazaar or take the help of your Insurance advisor.

Stay Insured.

First off, it’s the right thing that you are looking to extend the health coverage for your aging parents. A top-up policy is a good option if you want to increase your coverage without paying a higher premium for a new, higher-sum insured policy.

As your existing HDFC-Ergo plan does not seem to work out, instead of going for a rider, I’d recommend looking for a new health plan altogether. For my parents, I have taken the MCHI Senior Health Insurance plan. Manipal Cigna's senior citizen health insurance is a policy that is specifically designed for people who are 60 years and older. It goes up to 75 years. It covers the cost of being hospitalized, costs before and after being hospitalized, and other medical expenses. 

Some of the key features of this policy include inpatient hospitalization, pre-hospitalization, post-hospitalization, and domiciliary hospitalization, no claim bonus, and a waiting period of as low as 90 days for pre-existing diseases.

The policy also offers a wide network of hospitals across India for policyholders to access medical care and have a good claim settlement ratio which increases the chances of getting claims reimbursed. It's always a good idea to check the policy's terms and compare them with other options before making a decision.