70 likes | 81 Views
This is an important question, so letu2019s get straight to the answer u2013 yes, you can buy health insurance coverage in Singapore if you are a smoker.
E N D
This is an important question, so let’s get straight to the answer — yes, you can buy health insurance coverage in Singapore if you are a smoker. However, though you have access to buying health insurance, your habit will have an impact on your plan. Let’s find out more.
How does smoking impact health insurance? To answer this question, let’s first take a look at why smoking impacts your health insurance. As a smoker, you increase your susceptibility to a range of deadly health conditions including cancer, heart disease, lung disease, and diabetes, among others. This increased susceptibility automatically makes you a high-risk individual in the eyes of the insurer. This is even more so since the risk is raised by a habit that is voluntary. You face a higher chance of developing serious, long-term health issues in the near or distant future and these will lead you to make claims on your health insurance.
So, how do insurers cope with this risk? The answer is simple — you will probably have to shell out higher premiums. In essence, the Integrated Shield Plan premium charged to a smoker will most likely be higher than the premium cost incurred by a non-smoker.
Never attempt to hide your habit from the insurer! You may feel tempted to hide the fact that you smoke from your insurer. However, doing this can prove to be a huge mistake. Medical insurance companies can ask their policyholders for health records and reports. This can give them access to your health history and end up revealing information that you withheld. This can even lead to your claim get rejected entirely. That is not a situation you want to find yourself in. Withholding the fact that you are a smoker in order to save up on your premiums may see you lose the entire value of having a health insurance plan. Therefore, it is best to be honest and pay p a higher premium with the assurance that you will get your claims acknowledged by the insurer.
Quitting is tough, but not impossible Changing or stopping a habit takes a lot of time and willpower; however, things are not impossible. Quitting smoking will not only improve your own health but also keep your loved ones safe. Remember that secondhand smoke is also quite harmful for health.
If you are looking to quit the habit for good, you might want to take professional help. Counselling has been known to work; nicotine replacement therapy too has its benefits. You may speak to a doctor and, together, work out the best solution for a smoke-free, healthy life ahead. For further help in selecting the right health insurance plan, do speak to a professional financial consultant. Take care, stay healthy.