Health Insurance for Kidney Transplant

Health Insurance for Kidney Transplant

About 2 Lakh patients in India are waiting for organ donation, with a mere 15,000 donors available. The Ministry of Health’s calculation says that the annual requirement for kidneys could range between 2-3 Lakh, with a mere 6,000 transplants occurring in reality.

For better chances of survival, life-saving surgeries like Kidney transplantation are performed to replace specific organs in the human body.

Organ transplantation surgery is one of the major surgery, where the organ is removed from one person’s body and transplanted into the body of the other person. Therefore, organ transplantation involves two people, the donor (one who donates the organ) and the recipient (one suffering from organ failure).

Organ transplantation can be done for vital organs, like heart, kidney, liver, etc. It is a complicated procedure where the doctor has to match the organ between the recipient and donor.

The transplantation procedure is helpful for those people who are facing health issues due to organ failure. When any of your organs stop functioning and no medications and surgery can revive its functions, it is considered as organ failure.

Reasons for Kidney Failure

Kidney Failure can develop suddenly or gradually due to long-term damage. The possible causes of Kidney Failure include Diabetes, Hypertension, exposure to high levels of medication, extreme dehydration, kidney trauma or other factors.

Kidney disease is classified into five stages, ranging from very mild to complete Kidney Failure. The intensity of symptoms and complications increase as the stages progress.

Kidney Transplantation Cover

Recent medical treatments have led to the smooth replacement of malfunctioned internal organs with functional ones but at a much higher cost. Kidney transplant cost in India lies between 4, 40,000 to 5, 50,000 lakh. It might differ slightly in different states and hospitals. 
 

These unpredictable kidney transplant cost may force you to borrow money, take loans, burn through your savings, or both. However, to meet these unforeseen expenses, it is advisable to purchase a Health Insurance Policy that covers Kidney transplantation. The best health insurance for kidney transplant patients offer coverage to the policyholder up to a specified limit for organ donor expenses.

Who needs a kidney transplant? 

You may need a kidney transplant if you suffer from end-stage renal disease (ESRD) or chronic kidney disease and are treated with dialysis. The doctor determines whether the person really needs a kidney transplant after complete monitoring.
For an individual to undergo a kidney transplant, one must be healthy enough to manage their lifestyle with a strict diet and practice lifelong medication. For patients who suffer from critical illnesses, kidney transplants may be unsuccessful or dangerous.

Kidney patients, based on individual medical evaluations, such as age, can be considered for a transplant. Also, after complete psychosocial and medical tests, candidates are taken for the kidney transplant to ensure if they are healthy enough to undergo surgery. People who are aged or are prone to some health conditions such as diabetes can have successful surgeries.

Benefits of kidney transplant coverage 

During unfortunate events, a kidney transplant surgery cost with insurance acts as a saviour for the insured by providing comprehensive coverage in the medical and hospitalisation expenses. You can save the cost of dialysis post-surgery and improve your overall health and well-being with peace of mind and security.

With kidney transplant coverage, you can also get reimbursement of costs up to a specified limit that is incurred by the patients in the process of finding donors. Under Section 80D of the Income Tax Act of 1961, one can claim tax benefits and deductions after kidney transplant surgery.

Types of Kidney Transplant Surgery 

There are two types of kidney transplants:

1. Deceased Donor: Being one of the most common types of kidney donation, a deceased donor kidney transplant gives you a healthy kidney from someone who just lost their life. He/she should have made a decision to become an organ donor during their time of death. At least one solid organ is recovered from them for the purpose of transplantation and surgically transplanted into the recipient’s body whose natural kidneys are not functioning properly or diseased.

2. Living Donor: A living donor kidney transplant is a surgery wherein the kidney is removed from a healthy person who is alive. The donor chooses to donate one kidney to someone who is in need and they may be blood relatives or individuals who has emotional ties with the patient. A living donor transplant has many benefits compared to a deceased donor kidney transplant and the most important advantage is a significant and higher success rate.

How to Care After a Kidney Transplant Surgery? 

After a kidney transplant, patients will need at least three days in the hospital for the medical team to have a close watch on their recovery. The newly transplanted kidney works immediately after the surgery, or you will need dialysis for a temporary purpose until it functions properly.

You have to follow the doctor’s instructions on a keen note to keep your immune system healthy.

•  Eat low-salt and sugar foods to control pressure levels.
• Maintain a healthy weight by eating diet-rich foods, fresh fruits and veggies, whole grains, and lean protein.
• Tailor workouts and exercise programs as per your needs.
• Spend ample time with your friends and family.
• Use antimicrobial gels and wear masks when going out.
• Take your anti-rejection medicines as prescribed.
• Visit your doctor for regular check-ups.

Tips for choosing the Kidney Transplant Cover

Kidney transplantation surgery is a critical surgery; it is pivotal to check the inclusions and exclusions of the policy.

While considering Health Insurance for Kidney Transplant in India, ensure that it includes:

1.Donor’s expenses – Organ harvesting and surgery cost
2.Pre-hospitalisation and post-hospitalisation expenses
3.Cost of consumables
4.Cost of post-surgery care, monitoring, investigations, etc., which might also cost high.
5.Choose the Sum Insured while keeping in mind the estimated treatment cost of organ transplantation which includes kidney transplant cost.
6.To get immediate and quality medical care and treatment, check for availability of the nearest Network hospitals list.
7.Annual Health check-up that can aid in identifying potential health complications.
8.24/7 customer support
9.Hassle-free claim settlement either through cashless or reimbursement facility. 

Star Health Insurance offers Star Critical Illness Multi pay Insurance Policy, a standalone critical illness plan providing a lump-sum amount on diagnosis of 4 groups of Critical Illnesses covered in the policy. This policy covers the treatment expenses of kidney transplants, but the first diagnosis of the covered major disease/condition should have been experienced by the insured only after 90 days of commencement of cover under the policy. Also, the insured person should have survived up to 15 days from the date of diagnosis of such a major disease.

The policy covers major organ transplantation of lung, liver, kidney and pancreas up to the limits mentioned in the policy. Any person aged between 18 and 65 years can avail this policy. No pre-medical screening is required to take the policy, where the person proposed for insurance is up to and inclusive 50 yrs of age.

For more details on the policy, refer to policy wordings and clauses.

Conclusion

Undergoing an organ transplant surgery can lengthen a person’s life and allow those with a chronic illness to live a normal lifespan. Hence, a comprehensive Health Insurance plan is certainly required to manage the huge expenses of organ transplantation surgery and ongoing medical care.

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