If you live in a tropical region where the healthcare system is not as good as “Obamacare”, is dengue insurance a good option?
By: Ringo Bones
Filipino nurses in the United States who have benefited from
Obamacare often wonder why the Philippine government isn’t working hard enough
have a healthcare system as good as one established. But given that something
like this is still currently “science fiction”, will a kind of dengue insurance
like the Pioneer MediCash Dengue Insurance be the next best thing?
Given that dengue fever has financially devastating
consequences when it afflicts fixed income people in the Philippines, a disease
specific health insurance policy with an affordable premium would be an
excellent option. Recently, I’ve checked out if one is locally available in the
Philippines and as luck would have it, I’ve stumbled upon the Pioneer Pioneer
MediCash Dengue Insurance. It is basically a disease-specific health insurance
that provides a lump-sum payout of PhP 10,000 (which is equivalent to a little
over 200 US dollars) medical assistance in the event that the policyholder is
diagnosed with dengue fever – even if the diagnosis does not require a hospital
stay.
And even if you already have an HMO like Philhealth, there
is still value in availing oneself of Pioneer MediCash Dengue Insurance. You
still get your PhP 10,000 lump-sum payout on top of your HMO and Philhealth
benefits to take care of other medical expenses. Receipts or hospital bills are
not required as MediCash pays with just a valid doctor’s diagnosis accompanied
by the diagnostic test results. The Pioneer MediCash Dengue Insurance only
costs PhP 350 a year – which works out to an insurance premium of less than one
peso a day to be your basic health insurance against a common tropical disease
like dengue.
It is relatively easy to apply for the Pioneer MediCash
Dengue Insurance, you just need to pay for an activation form at SM Bills Pay
and complete the personal information form. No medical questionnaires are
required. And when it comes to the beneficiaries, you, your family members,
friends and household staff are eligible. When it comes to age requirement, applicants
ages 1 to 70 are eligible.
Unfortunately, like most health insurance policies, there
are preexisting condition restrictions. Someone who already sick with dengue
are ineligible for the PhP 10,000 benefit because the Pioneer MediCash Dengue
Insurance has a 15-day waiting period, which means that the insured should not
be feeling the symptoms of dengue, not be showing signs of dengue, not have
consulted a doctor for dengue and not make a claim for dengue.
To get the PhP 10,000 benefit, once you are insured over the
15-day waiting period and start feeling the symptoms and signs of dengue, you
should consult a doctor. And then ask the doctor to complete the Claims
Supplementary Medical Report (CSMR) which is like a medical certificate and
comes with your Pioneer MediCash Coverage Summary. Then take a digital photo of
your CSMR and the diagnostic results with your smartphone and then send the
photo via email to reatail@pioneer.com.ph
or viber to +63 917 5317213.
