AYUSH Treatment in Health Insurance

Ayurveda medicines have always had a rich history in India. Generally, not everyone looks for allopathic treatment, and people use to try Ayurveda treatment as it has no or minimum side effects on the human body. In 2013, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) requested that every health insurance company should cover AYUSH treatment under their health insurance plans. AYUSH stands for Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy. Continue reading to learn more about the AYUSH treatments in health insurance.

What is AYUSH Treatment?

AYUSH treatment refers to hospitalization using traditional Indian medicine like Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy. These ancient traditional health and wellness treatments are affordable and also result-oriented.

Due to the increasing demand for AYUSH treatment in India, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has made it mandatory for all health insurance companies to offer AYUSH treatment as a coverage benefit under their health insurance plans.

Due to the potential and increasing demand for AYUSH treatments in the country, it is important to confirm with your health insurance company whether AYUSH treatments are covered under your health insurance plan.

Eligibility Criteria to Get AYUSH Treatment Cover

Below mentioned are the specifications of health insurance offered Ayush treatment benefits under their coverage benefits:

Importance of AYUSH Treatments

There has been a paradigm shift in recent years from allopathic medicine to towards alternative treatments like Homeopathy, Ayurveda, Naturopathy, Yoga, etc. Health insurance companies have started including AYUSH treatment coverage in their health insurance plans to encourage this trend. So, these remedies are from the ancient science of India, and you can use these remedies along with mainstream treatments like dialysis, treatment of cancer etc. In various cases, remarkable results have been shown for using these AYUSH treatments along with allopathic treatments for the patients.

Health Insurance Plans Offering AYUSH Treatments

Check the below table, where we list a few best health insurance plans that offer AYUSH treatments in their coverage benefits. Please see the plan brochure or contact our RenewBuy POSP advisor for more details.

Benefits of Choosing Health Insurance Offering AYUSH Treatment Cover

Below mentioned are the Benefits of choosing Health Insurance plans offering AYUSH treatment cover:

• Affordable
• Easy Availability
• Best for Senior Citizen
• Wide Coverage
• Cashless Hospitalization
• Effective in the COVID-19 outbreak

Coverage Benefits Under AYUSH Treatment Cover

Below mentioned are the coverage benefits offered under AYUSH Treatment cover:

1. Expenses incurred due to Ayush treatment
2. Cost of hospitalization incurred due to Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy treatment
3. The coverage amount provided for Ayush treatments may vary from INR 2500 to INR 50K (it may vary from insurer to insurer and plan to plan).

Exclusions Under AYUSH Treatment Cover

Below mentioned are the coverage benefits covered under AYUSH treatment cover:

• Non-government hospitals: Treatment received at non-recognized government hospitals.
• Daycare treatments: Treatments required less than 24 hrs of hospitalization.
• Out-Patient Hospitalization: Any expenses related to the treatment but do not require hospitalization, such as health checkups and medical tests.
• Pre and Post Hospitalization: Expenses incurred before hospitalization and after the hospitalization are also not covered.

AYUSH Daycare Center

Below mentioned are the daycare centres where the policyholder can avail of AYUSH treatments.

• Community health centres
• Primary health centres
• Dispensary
• Polyclinic
• Clinic

Things to Remember While Buying AYUSH Treatment Cover

Below mentioned are some of the important things to consider while buying health insurance offering AYUSH treatment cover:

• The terms and conditions of a health insurance plan offering AYUSH treatment cover may differ from health insurance company to company. Therefore, always carefully read the inclusions and exclusions before choosing your health plan.
• Check whether you have to pay an extra premium amount for including AYUSH treatment cover in your health insurance plan.
• Choose a health insurance company with a wide range of network hospitals offering AYUSH treatment.
• There might be a cap on how much you can claim for AYUSH treatments under the health insurance plan. Therefore, carefully read the policy wordings before buying the health plan.

Claim Settlement for AYUSH Treatment Cover

Under AYUSH treatment cover, you can use both cashless and reimbursement claims. If you are hospitalized in a network hospital, you are eligible to get cashless treatment wherein the health insurance company will settle the bill amount directly with the hospital.

Moreover, you can submit a reimbursement claim if you are hospitalized in a non-network hospital. In this case, you will have to settle your hospital bills yourself in the hospital. Then, after submitting the required documents to the health insurance company, the health insurance company will reimburse your claim amount in your specified bank account.

Conclusion

Nowadays, most people prefer to go towards AYUSH treatment instead of allopathic treatment. Many health insurance companies have started including coverage for AYUSH treatment as a benefit covered under health insurance plans as people have started showing interest in alternative treatments like Yoga, Ayurveda, Homeopathy, etc.

Hence, you must read your policy document carefully to check whether you are eligible for AYUSH treatment cover or not. Connect with our RenewBuy POSP advisor if you have any questions about your health policy or AYUSH treatment cover.