Cataract Surgery Insurance

Cataract is a condition that affects the human eye. It creates obscuring in the eye, resulting in vision impairment. Cataracts are classified as subcapsular, nuclear, or cortical. It can also result in optic impairment if not treated quickly. If your eyesight has been foggy and blurry for a long time, you may need cataract surgery. To get a clear understanding, let us delve into the cataract surgery meaning. Cataract surgery is also called a Motiyabind Operation in India.

Cataracts are caused by a variety of factors. Although cataract is most common among the elderly, there has been a recent trend in India where the cataract is affecting people under the age of 50!

The development and spread of diabetes in India could be one of the explanations for this. The following are among the reasons for cataracts, in addition to diabetes and advancing age. Oversupply of oxidising agents, i.e., oxygen atoms that are structurally altered as a result of typical day-to-day activities, cigarettes, UV radiation, trauma from previous eye injuries, long-term usage of steroids and other drugs for certain conditions, such as diabetes, and radiation treatment can cause cataract.

Your eye aims to assist you in seeing by bending (refracting) light rays that enter your eye. Your eye lens should be clean, but it is clouded because of a cataract. It's like seeing through a cloudy or dirty automobile windshield when you have a cataract. Things may appear fuzzy, indistinct, or less vibrant.

A cataract can only be removed by surgery. When a cataract prevents you from performing things you desire or need to accomplish, an ophthalmologist will prescribe cataract removal.

Your hazy biological lens is extracted and substituted with a transparent artificial lens during the Motiyabind Operation. An intraocular lens or IOL is the name of this type of lens. Your surgeon will discuss IOLs and how they operate with you.

Now, remember that a cataract surgery cost in India can be anywhere from 40,000 to over a lakh. Ensure you are insured with health insurance for eye surgery, so you do not have to shoulder the financial burden alone. If you have the correct insurance, the benefits of health insurance will be visibly clear to you.

It's not always necessary to get surgery if you have a cataract. It's possible that you won't notice any changes in your vision. When wearing prescription glasses, using a magnifying glass, or relying on better lighting, some individuals with this issue can see just fine.

However, as cataracts progress, they may produce more symptoms. Your vision may be faint or blurry. When you look through the cataract-affected eye, you may experience double vision. These issues can do reading, working on a laptop, and doing anything else that requires clear vision difficult.

You could have poor night vision, making driving in the dark more difficult. You can be hypersensitive to headlights reflections. Severe cataracts can cause people to fail the visual portion of a driver's exam.

You may be more vulnerable to brightness from the sun if you have cataracts. You may notice a halo when you look at bright lights. This may prevent you from spending as much time outside as you'd like. It also makes various activities more difficult, such as skiing and golf.

If you're experiencing any of these problems, surgery may help you get back on track.

You may be asked not to eat solid meals for a minimum of 6 hours before your procedure by your surgeon. Cataract surgery can be performed in either an outpatient surgery centre or a hospital. Here's what will take place:

• Eye solutions or an injection surrounding the eye will be used to numb your eye. Medication to help you calm down may also be administered to you.
• During operation, you will be awake. During the process, you may perceive light and motion, but you will not be able to observe what the doctor may do to your eye.
• Your surgeon uses a special microscope. They make tiny slits (cuts) along the surface of your cornea with a blade or a laser.
• The surgeon uses these incisions to access the lens in your eyeball. They will tear apart the cataracted lens and remove it with relatively microscopic devices. They then replace your old lens with your new one.
• Your doctor will not have to seal the wounds with stitches in most cases. With time, these "self-sealing" scars will close on their own. While you recover after surgery, a screen will be fitted over your eye to safeguard it.
• For roughly 15–30 minutes, you will repose in a recovery room. After that, you'll be ready to return home.

Like most other surgeries, cataract surgery costs are also quite high in India. This is especially true if you are getting operated in a first-tier city. While the typical cost of cataract surgery for a single eye is between ₹15,000 and ₹30,000, operations involving advanced techniques cost more. The cost of each eye might range from ₹60,000 to ₹1,00,000, contingent on the advanced therapy and the kind of lens used. The cost of post-operative treatment, such as prescribed eye drops and other medications, is also included.

A medical insurance plan that includes insurance for eye operations can help you save a lot of money in the long run. Several reputable health insurance firms, like Tata AIG, offer medical insurance plans that cover the expense of cataract procedures.

You need to ensure that you get health insurance with cataract cover.

1. Waiting Time: You cannot get access to your cataract cover until your waiting time is over. Thus the onus is on you to see that you are getting a medical insurance policy that does not demand a very long waiting time.
2. Limits: The money that clients can claim as compensation for cataract surgery under their medical insurance plan is limited. Any costs involved by policyholders over the designated sub-limit should be covered independently. However, different insurers have different limits on claim amounts. As a result, keep in mind while purchasing health insurance coverage that you might not be able to use the entire sum covered amount for cataract surgery. If you wish your health insurance to fund the entire cost of cataract treatment, choose a plan that doesn't have any sub-limits.
3. Features: Not all policies cover all the differnt aspects of the cataract operation. Thus, ensure that you choose a policy with all your desired features that give you the maximum coverage.

Buying a medical insurance policy from Tata AIG is simple and can be done in two ways:

a. You can go to the office of Tata AIG physically and get the application form. You can then provide the details asked for on the form and any other information or proof you need to submit. Post this, you drop the papers in the appropriate place and wait to hear back from the company. You should get a mail package with your insurance details pretty soon if everything is in place.

b. You can also get the policy online if you so desire. All you need to do is log into the Tata AIG website and place an order. You will find a list of plans and policies offered by the company and what they entail. Go through each plan carefully and find one that suits your requirements the most. Once you find the plan you want, apply for that. Input all your details and upload your documents. If everything is in place, you will receive an e-mail for Tata AIG with your health insurance plan details.

The documents required are:

• Medical insurance bills for in-patient hospitalisation signed by the insured.
• The supervisor at the hospital/network hospital’s sign on the discharge card.
• Claim form with the insured's signature from a personalised list.
• A valid medical inquiry report.
• The receipts from the medical store and the doctor's script.
• A list of all hospital commodities ordered by the doctor, along with all necessary information.
• Copies of the prior year's health insurance plan.
• Doctor's appointment bills and receipts.

The eligibility criteria to qualify for a medical insurance plan from Tata AIG are:

• Age Requirements

Health insurance is available to everyone over the age of 18 and up to 65 years old; nonetheless, minor children should be between the ages of 90 days and 25 years old. When you reach the age of 25, it is recommended that you purchase a medical insurance plan to benefit from lower health insurance premium costs.

• Pre-Existing Conditions

There is a 2-4 year waiting time for pre-existing illnesses, throughout which you will not be able to take full benefit of your medical insurance coverage.

• Pre-medical Examination

For insurance buyers over 45 or 55 years of age, pre-medical exams or examinations are usually required.

Cataracts can be highly dangerous if not dealt with in time. It is an illness that cannot be allowed to escalate as it has the potential to leave us blind. Thus, we must go to a doctor as soon as we feel some difficulty with our vision. The one thing that can stop us from going to the doctor is the fear that we may have to incur a large bill. We can avoid this if we have a comprehensive health insurance plan with cataract cover. So do not allow yourself to be in a position where you are caught off guard without a plan in hand. Get your cataract cover today!