HIV patients to get insurance cover By K.T. Jagannathan http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/002200707061721.htm
Chennai, July 6: For the first time ever, HIV (human immunodeficiency virus)-infected patients in India are set to get insurance cover, thanks to the pioneering initiative taken by the city-based Star Health and Allied Insurance Company Ltd. The country's first stand-alone health insurance company, Star Health has already moved the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) seeking permission to launch a product to provide group insurance cover for HIV-hit. V. Jagannathan, Chairman and Managing Director, said the country had 5.7 million HIV-infected people. Estimates suggested that at least 0.75 million of them could be carrying full-blown AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome), he pointed out. The premium would be Rs.3,000 per person per year. ``The compensation becomes payable if an HIV patient is confirmed to be carrying AIDS,'' he told The Hindu. The total cover per person would be Rs.50,000. Mr. Jagannathan said Star Health would work in close co-operation with non-government organizations (NGOs) and other social groups to identify HIV cases and offer insurance cover. The social stigma attached to HIV patients and the difficulty in drawing the individuals out to take up a policy on their own had forced Star Health to adopt the institutional route to offer this cover. Star Health, he said, had also been holding talks with a Union Territory to offer insurance cover of BPL (below poverty line) families. The company, he said had already signed up with the Andhra Pradesh Government to provide cover against dreadful diseases to 20 lakh BPL families in three districts at an annual premium of Rs.66 crore. Mr. Jagannathan said the company had settled claims to the extent of Rs. 15 crore between April and June this year. The company, he said, had also come out with a product called `Red Carpet' for senior citizens. It offered hospitalization benefits only for people above 60 years and up to 69 years, at entry level and assured renewals thereafter. The premium would be fixed (Rs.5,000 to Rs. 10,000) for a cover of Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 2 lakh. There would be no pre-acceptance screening, he said. The policy would cover even pre-existing diseases with a look-back period of 12 months. Star Health, he said, had also come out with a `Diabetes Safe' insurance policy. It covered already known diabetics against risks arising out of specified complications. The policy cover ranged from Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 4 lakhs, he added.
