Since July 2024, the National Health Insurance Department has launched the "Home Acute Care Pilot Project" to move inpatient-level medical services directly to homes. By the end of April 2026, a total of 7,788 patients had been served, and nearly 90% of patients successfully completed treatment. The Ministry of Health and Welfare has also planned to promote home-based cancer chemotherapy. Since September this year, many life insurance companies have successively launched home-based medical insurance, bringing medical care and insurance into the home simultaneously. Regarding the choice of home medical insurance, Zhang Ruowen, business director of the Capital Operations Office of Leishan Insurance, provides suggestions in three directions.
Zhang Ruowen observed that clients often ask her recently, how should the protection be connected when treatment is carried out at home? Currently, most of the home-based medical insurances launched are one-year products, and insurance renewals are evaluated annually by insurance companies. The scope of home-based medical insurance claims is determined by the emergency care items announced by the competent authority. She pointed out that this is the first step for insurance companies to observe the market reaction. As in-home treatment becomes more and more popular, newly launched medical insurance in the future is expected to include in-home treatment as a benefit item. The policy in hand also needs to be reviewed regularly and adjusted accordingly.
The first step in reviewing is to figure out what you bought. Zhang Ruowen often uses the metaphor of accounting. She knows how to keep accounts when buying things, and insurance policies are also worthy of accounting. People can check the policies under their name through the "Insurance Passbook" of the Life Insurance Association, and then list the various protection limits according to categories such as medical care, major injuries, cancer, accidents, etc. The filled-in numbers are the parts that have been planned, and the blank spaces are places where you can learn more. Finally, consider your current medical expenses and family responsibilities, and discuss adjustments with a trusted professional.
She emphasized that every policy purchased in the past had its meaning at that time. She once met a client who was insured by his parents when he was born. The daily hospitalization limit was 500 yuan, but the original limit was still maintained 20 or 30 years later. She said that this reflected the price of goods back then, and regular review would allow the insurance to keep up with today's life. She suggested that you should review every 3 to 5 years when your life is stable. When family responsibilities increase, such as getting married, buying a house, or having children, it is also a good time to review again.
After sorting out the policy, if you want to supplement it, Zhang Ruowen recommends paying attention to two things first: First, it is the actual payment of medical miscellaneous expenses of medical insurance. The limit of some early policies is about 50,000 to 60,000 yuan. People can consider whether to increase it based on the current medical expenses; second, it is the lump-sum payment for major injuries. People can check whether they already have relevant protection, and then plan according to their needs. Zhang Ruowen believes that home-based medical insurance is more suitable for people aged 40 to 60 who have low medical expenses and want to control premiums. Since they can apply for claims even if they are hospitalized, they can be used to improve hospitalization protection. Younger people are advised to plan the actual payment amount first.
Finally, it should be noted that the targets of home emergency care are mainly elderly people over 75 years old. The current upper limit of new insurance age for home medical insurance is between 54 and 75 years old. After evaluation by the insurance company, the insured can renew the policy up to the age of 80 or 85. If you plan early, the protection will have the opportunity to be extended to an older age. For elders who have exceeded the new insurance age, Zhang Ruowen suggests that they instead prepare savings. If the elders have the financial ability, they can set aside special funds for medical expenses; if they are taken care of by their children, brothers and sisters can set aside a fixed amount every month to jointly prepare medical and care expenses for their parents. She said that if everyone prepares their own protection, family members can feel at ease and leave love to each other.
Leishan Insurance reminds the public to take stock of their insurance policies while they are healthy, retain the existing protection as a basis, and then fill in the gaps according to needs, so that the protection can keep up with the pace of medical care. Actual underwriting and claims settlement are still subject to the policy terms of each insurance company.
