Mr Omar a 40 year old man, blessed with 2 kids aged 10 and 12 years, the sole earning member suddenly collapsed one day and had to be hospitalized. He had received a heart stroke which meant a heavy expenditure on availing treatment. By God's grace and his planning he had bought a health insurance policy with a good amount of coverage sufficient enough to look after the medical expenses. His proactive approach and vision to buy best catering to all his needs saved him and his family from imploring for finance. Prudence lies not only in buying insurance but opting for best health insurance.

The question now arises how to define best health insurance? The definition of best may vary from person to person but below are certain tips that may help you buy the insurance.

1. Evaluate your future liabilities and decide the sum assured

It is essential to evaluate your future financial liabilities. Like in above case, Mr. Omar had financial liability of providing education to his children and also providing for day to day expenses. In such a scenario, the sum assured must be high so as to take out minimum from you cash reserve which would be required to fulfill other financial obligations.

2. Select the right insurance provider

Health care policies are provided by life insurance providers or general insurance providers. If you go by experts' opinion buy health policy from general insurance as there is variance in premium and life insurance company generally focus on life policies rather than health insurance.

3. Compare policies/premiums of different providers

Compare policy benefits and premium amounts of various providers as he policy should be a blessing in hard times.

4. Check the track road of health provider

Before finalizing the insurance company, do check the claim settlement track of the company. You may avail the information from any acquaintance that has an experience of claim settlement with the insurance company or can check out on internet also.

4. Read thoroughly all the inclusions and exclusions

Never just leave the things on agents. Do read all the terms and conditions and inclusions and exclusions of the policies so as to make an informed decision.

5. Check the list of hospitals on panel

All the insurance providers have tie ups with certain hospitals in a locality that act as their network hospitals. Cashless facility is provided on all the empanelled hospitals and these hospitals are aware of the settlement process thus making things easier in time of emergency. Check if the hospitals in your locality are on panel or not as in times of emergency neighborhood hospitals are preferred.

Health insurance in India is on the rise as are the medical costs. The market is flooded with various providers, so compare the benefits of various providers and then decide the best insurance company for yourself.