Is Liver Disease Covered in Health Insurance?

In today's world keeping your body healthy and clean is a big challenge that every individual is facing. People are not getting time to focus on their health because of their busy schedules and lifestyle. They are not eating food on time and eating unhealthy food which is resulting in major health issues. Because of this, the liver of people gets damaged and cases of liver disease are increasing day by day. To save your hard-earned money, make sure you take health insurance which will help you in times of medical emergency and will pay your hospital bills. In this article, we will talk about liver diseases and whether your health insurance plans covers it or not.

What are Liver Diseases?

The liver is part of the human body and is responsible for multiple functions. The liver helps with metabolism, digestion, detoxification, maintaining immunity and many other functions. By doing all these functions the liver gets affected and then the liver of the human being is diagnosed with liver diseases. Different types of liver diseases are there. Liver diseases are caused due to viruses, illness, alcohol or drugs and some are genetic (from birth). 

Types of Liver Diseases

• Hepatitis A: This is the type of liver disease that is caused due to contaminated food or water. This disease doesn’t require any treatment and takes some weeks to recover.
• Hepatitis B: It is caused by the hepatitis B virus and can cause both acute and chronic disease. It is transmitted through blood or other fluids from one body to another.
• Hepatitis C: It is also the type of disease that is caused due to the contact of someone's blood that is infected by Hepatitis C viruses. In the early stage, no symptoms can be detected but it can damage the liver permanently in the last stage.
• Fatty Liver: Fatty liver is a disease that is caused either by overconsumption of alcohol and drugs or by having fatty and oily food. It can be cured by improving eating and drinking habits.

Symptoms of Liver Diseases

There are symptoms that indicate that you are suffering from liver diseases and they are:

• Dark urine
• Feeling tired
• Nausea 
• Vomiting 
• Loss of appetite 
• Weight loss and muscle loss

Health Insurance Coverage for Liver Diseases

Health insurance works as a saviour in times of medical emergencies. Health insurance companies provide coverage for liver diseases under critical illness of health insurance. Insurance companies offer critical illness as an add-on in the base plan of health insurance policy. The Health insurance company gives coverage for treatment expenses and hospitalisation costs to its customers. If you are diagnosed with any kind of liver disease after purchasing health insurance then you are eligible to get coverage for its treatment.

Inclusion and Exclusion Under Health Insurance for Liver Diseases

There are different kinds of inclusion and exclusion under health insurance for liver diseases. It all depends on the types and conditions of diseases an insured person is suffering from. The insurance company keeps some terms and conditions before giving coverage for liver diseases.

1. Hepatitis

If a person is suffering from any type of hepatitis disease and it is in the last stage then the underwriter will cancel the claim.

If a person is suffering from any type of hepatitis disease and it is in the initial stage and the case is minor then it can be considered and it all depends on the underwriter.

2. Fatty Liver 

If a person is suffering from fatty liver then there are certain conditions that will be applied in the health insurance policy for that person.

If a person gets diagnosed with fatty liver after purchasing health insurance then he will be eligible for getting a claim for it after serving a waiting period of 2 years.

If a person is suffering from a fatty liver before buying the policy then he has to serve a waiting period of 2-4 years for getting a claim for its medical treatment. The waiting period can differ according to the plan and company.

Inclusion

The insurance company will only give coverage to an individual if he is diagnosed with liver disease after purchasing the health insurance.

Exclusion

There is no such company that offers health insurance to the person if he is suffering from any type of liver disease.

Top Health Insurance Companies and Plan Covering Liver Diseases

Liver disease is the type of disease that comes under critical illness. Some companies provide insurance to the person suffering from liver disease while the rest of the company permanently excludes liver disease coverage. 

The company that covers patients with liver disease is listed below:

*Note: The underwriter will thoroughly verify the report of all medical checkups and he can reject the proposal if he finds any kind of serious conditions.

If you get diagnosed with liver disease after buying the health insurance then you will get the coverage after serving a waiting period. The waiting period will be between 2-4 years depending on the company and its plans. Go through the below listed top companies that cover liver diseases:

Government Schemes and Non-Profitable programmes

The Government of India is conducting a programme called the “National Viral Hepatitis Control Program” which is conducted for diseases like hepatitis. The aim of this programme is to fight hepatitis C and eliminate it from the country by 2030. Under this programme an individual infected with hepatitis B & C will get free drugs from the government. 

The objective of this programme is:

• To enhance the awareness among the community about hepatitis and liver diseases.
• To educate people of the nation about preventive measures that should be taken to reduce the infection.
• To help people get diagnosed with hepatitis early and treatment for the same at all levels.

There was an operational guideline launched by Dr Harsh Vardhan ( Health Minister under the Government of India from 30 May 2019 to 7 July 2021) for Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) with NPCDCS (National Programme for Prevention & Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke). This guideline has been launched because of an increase in cases of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in people of India due to the changing lifestyles and habits of an individual. The aim of this operational guideline is to spread awareness about non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and its prevention.

The objective of this guideline is:

• To prevent NAFLD by bringing change in behaviour and lifestyle.
• Early diagnosis of NAFLD and management at different levels.
• To build such a healthcare system that can diagnose, treat and prevent NAFLD.

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FAQs

Ques 1. Does life insurance cover liver disease?

Ans. It depends on the condition of the disease and how much the liver has been affected. The type of plan you have purchased and its add-on will also depend on the coverage.

Ques 2. Which disease is not covered in health insurance?

Ans. Pre-existing diseases like diabetes, cancer, and asthma are not covered in the health insurance by the insurer.

Ques 3. Is liver disease repairable?

Ans. It depends on the type of infection or disease the liver is carrying, and how much the liver is infected. In some cases liver gets repaired by itself but if the condition is serious then proper medication will be required.

Ques 4. Which diseases are covered after 2 years in health insurance?

Ans. After serving the waiting period of 2 years diseases like ENT disorder, joint replacement, hernia and cataracts can get coverage for its treatment.

Ques 5. What is the biggest indicator of liver disease?

Ans. The biggest indicators of liver disease are feeling tired, dark-coloured urine, jaundice, vomiting etc.