Overview
The Star Health Red Carpet Senior Citizens plan is tailored for individuals aged 60 to 75, offering lifelong renewability with no pre-acceptance medical screening. It provides coverage for hospitalization, modern treatments, pre-existing diseases after 12 months, and outpatient expenses. The plan offers sum insured options of up to ₹25 lakhs, with a 30% compulsory co-payment for all claims. It also includes benefits like cashless treatment at a wide hospital network (14,000+) and coverage for day care procedures.
Experts Review
Written by Nikhil Nair
Senior Writer
The Star Health Red Carpet Senior Citizens plan is a reasonably priced policy designed specifically for seniors aged 60-75, offering a range of benefits including hospitalization, modern treatments like chemotherapy and angiography, and coverage for pre-existing diseases after 12 months. Its key feature is lifelong renewability without pre-acceptance screening, which is beneficial for seniors with existing health issues. The plan also covers outpatient expenses and daycare procedures, adding to its comprehensiveness.
However, the plan’s credibility is questionable due to Star Health’s poor average claim settlement ratio of 83% in recent years and high complaint volumes, indicating operational challenges. The co-payment clause of 30-50% significantly increases out-of-pocket expenses, especially for older policyholders. In essence, the maximum sum insured of ₹25 lakhs combined with the co-pays, room rent caps, and disease-wise sub-limits, means the plan could easily fall short and lead to high out-of-pocket expenses.
Pros
Insurer has a solid track record with great claim and service metrics.
Cons
Not very feature-rich.
No Restoration Benefit, which is a notable gap.
No Bonus for being healthy and not claiming insurance, which could be a drawback for some.
No coverage if you are forced to hospitalize at home, which is a key feature.
Star Health
Key Insights
Founded
2006
Star Health was established 19 years ago and has built strong credibility over time, backed by its long-standing presence in the market.
Claims Experience
85% claims settled in 30 Days
Star Health settles only 85% of claims it receives, which is relatively low and may raise concerns about reliability during claim payouts.
Network Hospitals
14,000+
Star Health has a strong network with over 14,000 hospitals, ensuring wide accessibility and convenience for policyholders.
Complaints
52 complaints per 10,000 claims registered
Star Health has a relatively high volume of complaints, which may point to ongoing issues in customer service or claim handling.
Features
All
Great
Good
Bad
Co-payment
The policy will only cover 70% of the final bill. The rest is on you. They call this a co-payment.
Room Rent
Your insurer won’t let you stay in a room whose rent exceeds 1% of the sum insured. If it’s an ICU they’ll bump it to 2% of the sum insured. And in the event you breach these limits, then you’ll have to pay a lot more.
Disease sub-limit
Your insurance cover won’t be fully available in case you are treated for cataracts, cerebro vascular accident, cardio vascular diseases, cancer, breakage of bones and a few other diseases. Meaning the insurance company has a cap on the total amount they’ll pay out if you are treated for these specific illnesses.
Pre existing diseases waiting
If you’re already dealing with diabetes, cardiovascular problems or any such illnesses, the insurer will cover all costs arising out of these pre-existing problems after just 1 year. It’s probably the best deal you can get to be honest.
Pre/Post hospitalization
No worries if the doctor had to run a host of diagnostic tests before or after hospitalizing you. The insurer has your back. They will cover this amount in full for a pretty reasonable duration - 30 days before you are hospitalized and up to a specified limit after discharge, which is capped at a maximum up to ₹5,000 based on the cover amount chosen. This includes the cost of medication by the way.
Permanent Exclusions
Conditions or treatments that the policy clearly says it will not cover.
Expenses incurred on Enhanced External Counter Pulsation Therapy and related therapies, Chelation therapy, Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, Rotational Field Quantum Magnetic Resonance Therapy, VAX-D, Low level laser therapy, Photodynamic therapy & other similar therapies
Autologous derived Stromal vascular fraction, Chondrocyte Implantation, Procedures using Platelet Rich plasma and Intra articular injection therapy
Expenses related to any admission primarily for diagnostics and evaluation purposes are excluded.
Diagnostic expenses not related or incidental to current diagnosis and treatment are excluded.
Expenses for admission primarily for bed rest and not for treatment are excluded.
Disclaimer: For illustration purposes only - exact terms are in the policy wording.
Specific Illness
The following illnesses are not covered under the policy for 2 years.
Treatment of cataract and diseases of the anterior and posterior chamber of the eye
Diseases of ENT (Ear, Nose, Throat)
Thyroid-related diseases
Benign diseases of the breast
Subcutaneous benign lumps
Waiting Period
30 days Initial waiting period
2 years Specific illness waiting period
1 years Pre-existing disease waiting period
Ditto's Take
◦ Excellent ◦
Waiting periods on this policy are excellent. The PED waiting period is better than usual.
What's missing in the policy
No Restoration Benefit.
No Bonus for being healthy and not claiming insurance.
No coverage if you are forced to hospitalize at home.
Maternity benefits not offered.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Does Red Carpet Senior Citizens have waiting periods?
- 30-Day Waiting Period: Hospitalizations won’t be covered for the first 30 days of the policy unless it’s an accident.
- Specific Illness Waiting Period: There’s a 2-year waiting period for a list of diseases which is a mandate before you can start claiming.
- Pre-Existing Disease Waiting Period: There's a 1-year waiting period for any pre-existing disease you may have while buying the policy.
Does Red Carpet Senior Citizens have room rent restrictions?
Does Red Carpet Senior Citizens offer a restoration benefit?
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