Health Insurance for Paralysis Treatment in India

A Guide to Health Insurance for Paralysis Recovery in India

Is Paralysis covered under Health Insurance?

Paralysis is a serious medical condition. A paralytic patient needs ample time to recover from it; immediate treatment and regular medical attention are important requisites. Therefore, it is considered a critical illness and In case hospitalization is For more than 24 hours, medical expenses can be covered in your regular Health Insurance plan. However, the treatment expenses can be covered with a rider plan.

A rider is an additional benefit that can be obtained by adding it to your basic health insurance plan and paying an additional premium.

What is Paralysis?

When a person experiences paralysis, the person loses the ability to move one or more muscles in a part of their body. It happens when there is a problem in the nervous system—specifically in the brain, spinal cord, or nerves—that prevents signals from reaching the muscles.

Types of Paralysis

Types of Paralysis include:

1. Complete Paralysis, where you do not feel any sensation in your muscles, norare you able to move or control your muscles.
2. Partial Paralysis or ‘paresis’ or incomplete Paralysis where you can feel certain sensations in your muscles.
3. Localised Paralysis affects specific areas such as your face, feet, hands or vocal cords.
4. Generalised Paralysis can affect more than one body part at a time. This can lead to the following conditions:

• Monoplegia affects one part of the body, such as one arm or leg.
• Hemiplegia affects one arm and one leg on the same side of the body.
• Paraplegia, also known as paralysis of the lower body, affects both legs and sometimes the hips and organs in the lower abdomen.
• Quadriplegia affects both arms and legs and sometimes, muscles in the trunk, the functions of internal organs, or both.

Common causes of Paralysis include stroke, spinal cord injury or tumour and nerve disorders like multiple sclerosis, substance abuse, cerebral palsy, etc.

Symptoms of Paralysis are usually easy to recognise. If you have Paralysis, you will lose function in one or more areas of your body. A tingling or numbing sensation may occur before total Paralysis sets in. Controlling muscles in the affected body parts will also be difficult or impossible due to Paralysis.

Your doctor may diagnose Paralysis using X-rays, CT scans, MRI scans or other imaging Tests. The treatment involves physiotherapy, mobility and medications. In some cases, advanced nerve surgery techniques in conjunction with physical therapy may be used to reverse arm and hand paralysis caused due to spinal cord injury.

Significance of Critical Illness Policy

The treatment cost depends on the severity of the disease. If the whole body has been affected by the paralytic attack, the treatment cost tends to be to be higher, whereas Where a specific body part is affected, a lesser cost is incurred.

Dealing with Paralysis gets more complicated when accompanied by financial strain from the treatment. Health insurance for a paralysis patient generally comes under a critical illness policy. In such cases, taking a Critical Illness Policy beforehand can be extremely useful.

If you choose a critical illness cover, you will be eligible for a lump sum amount for treatment expenses when diagnosed with a major critical illness. Many insurers in India offer Critical Illness Health Insurance plans.

The Star Critical Illness Multipay Insurance Policy, a standalone critical illness policy, provides lump sum compensation for the diagnosis of any critical illness among the four groups of critical illnesses mentioned in the policy. However, the policy covers treatment expenses only after 90 days from the commencement of coverage. The insured person should have survived for at least 15 days from the date of diagnosis of such a major disease. Policyholders can enrol in the Star Wellness Program, which intends to promote, incentivise, and reward insured persons for their healthy lifestyle through various wellness activities, earn reward points, and avail themselves of discounts on renewal premiums.

For more details on the terms and conditions of these policies, please refer to the policy clauses.