All About Non-Medical Expenses
You must wonder that even though you pay huge premium amounts for your insurance every year, you still end up paying at the hospital. Why is there a need for you to pay even when you use your policy to file an insurance claim?
Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), the authority that guides and regulates insurance in India, gives a list of expenses during hospitalization that are not payable by the insurance company.
This has been done to avoid any misuse of health insurance. These expenses have to be borne by the policyholder themselves. The expenses excluded from health insurance coverage are known as non-medical expenses or NMEs.
Here in this blog, we tell you in detail about what these non medical expenses are so
- you know what you’ve been charged for during hospitalization,
- you can easily identify them in your hospital bills,
- you know in advance that these are NMEs payable out of your pocket (no shockers!)
Optional non-medical expenses in health insurance
Below mentioned optional medical items used for treatment are not considered medical expenses.
- Food (other than provided by insurance)
- Mineral water
- Baby food
- Nebuliser kit
- Laundry/attendant charges
- Thermometer
- Belts/braces
- Beauty services
- Carry bags
Non-medical expenses for items used in treatment
Below mentioned items used in treatment are considered NMEs.
- Registration/admission charges
- Spirit, disinfectant, hydrogen peroxide
- Urine container
- Infusion pump
- Blood reservation
- Nutrition/Dietician charges
- Vaccination cost
- Antiseptic mouthwash
- HIV kit
- Diabetic footwear
Non-medical charges in room charges
Below mentioned NMEs are part of room charges and not payable by insurance.
- Hand wash
- Tissue paper
- Housekeeping charges
- Comb, cap, slippers
- Toothpaste and toothbrush
- Pulse oximeter charges
- Gown
- Foot cover
- Cold pack/hot pack
- Buds
Non-medical expenses in procedural costs
Below listed items are considered non-medical expenses in procedural costs.
- Surgical blades
- Hair removal cream
- Bandages, cotton
- Disposable razors
- Surgical drill
- Apron
- Arthroscopy and endoscopy instrument charges
- Harmon scalpel blades
- Gauze blades
- Eye pad
Other non-medical expenses
Some other additional non-medical expenses are mentioned below.
- Barber charges
- Syringes, needles, sterilized injections
- Washing charges
- Medicine box
- Paper gloves
- Digestion gels
- Referral doctor’s fees
It’s important that you know of these inclusions and exclusions, and be a smart policyholder. It’s of much help during unforeseen medical emergencies.
These non-medical expenses or non-reimbursable medical expenses constitute your total out of pocket expenses.
Apart from NMEs there are other expenses as well that constitute your total out of expenses, like - copay, proportionate, excess of treatment capping, etc. These extra expenses depend on your policy clauses. That’s why you should always check your policy clauses and conditions before buying and going for a claim.