Child Career Plan

Introduction:
This plan is specially designed to meet the increasing educational and other needs of growing children. It
provides the risk cover on the life of child not only during the policy term but also during the extended term
(i.e. 7 years after the expiry of policy term). A number of Survival benefits are payable on surviving by the
life assured to the end of the specified durations.

Invest in Child Insurance, Plan for Your Child's Future

The birth of a child changes one's outlook toward the future. As a parent, you are now responsible for
this little person. It is your duty to ensure that his/her future is secure. How does one achieve this? A
child insurance plan is a good place to start.
A child insurance plan offers the twin benefits of insurance and investment. Parents can purchase
such a plan when the child is as young as 14 days. The policy matures when the child becomes an
adult. However, many child insurance policies allow policyholders to make regular or occasional
withdrawals before maturity of the plan.
Given that child insurance involves investment planning over a number of years, it is a great tool
when planning for the future. Below are some long-term benefits of child insurance plans.
1. Saving for Children's Education One of the biggest expenses that parents face is footing
their children's tuition fees. Studying in a good school does not come cheap. Moreover, if your child
later decides to go abroad for higher studies or enrol in a leading MBA school, will you be able to
fund the costs? The sum available on the maturity of a child insurance plan could go a long way in
easing this financial burden.
2. Support during Serious Illness If your child has a family history of serious illness, purchase
child insurance when he/she is young and healthy. God forbid if your child were to be involved in an
accident and needed to be hospitalized, a child insurance plan could provide financial support. You
could withdraw a lump sum from the yet-to-mature policy to ensure that your child receives the
necessary medical treatment.
3. Untimely Death of a Parent One can never be too prepared for death. In the event of the
death of a parent during the term of a child insurance policy, the insurer offers a premium waiver.
Thus, the beneficiary receives a lump sum amount and is no longer required to make any premium
payments on the policy.
4. Disciplined Savings Before purchasing child insurance, calculate what you are planning for,
whether higher studies for your child, marriage, or even a mortgage on a house. While you do your
calculations, keep inflation in mind. Prices change considerably in less than a decade. Once you have
an amount in mind, buy a suitable child insurance policy. The regular premium payments will soon
become a habit and you will be successfully putting money away for your child's future.

5. Income Protection for Your Child This is an important benefit for child actors, singers and
others who earn significant incomes at a young age. Their money stands to multiply at a higher rate
over a longer period when invested in a child insurance policy.
6. Collateral for Loans A child insurance plan is also widely accepted as collateral by banks and
other lenders when processing education loans or other personal loans. This could stand your son or
daughter in good stead for the future.
When purchasing child insurance, look for policies that focus on cash value. High cash value can
later be used to take loans or make a down payment on a house. Avoid policies that increase
premium rates annually. Most importantly, buy insurance while you child is young to benefit from
low rates and high returns.

case study and history

business standard
40 Years Ago...and now: Health insuranceFrom only govt to baby steps by the private
sector
With health care costs rising 18 per cent annually, having a high cover has
become a necessity

In the early 80s, a tonsillectomy - the surgical removal of the tonsils common amid
children - would cost Rs 100. Today, it has increased by 100 times to Rs 10,000 or more,
depending on the city or hospital where the surgery takes place. Recovering the cost of
this operation, however, is probably easier today than it was then.
That's because the concept of health insurance was scarcely known. Indeed, the
products available were fairly rudimentary. For government employees, there was
insurance in the form of Central Health Scheme. There was the Employees State
Insurance Scheme for blue-collar workers. Most of the hospitals were run by government

bodies or large public limited companies, where you could get treatment at nominal or
no cost.
Things have changed since. There are government-sponsored general insurance
companies and at least 20 private insurance companies offering products.
In 1986, when health insurance products were launched under the 'Mediclaim' name by
government insurance companies, the minimum sum for policies was Rs 15,000 and the
maximum was Rs 5 lakh. Today, the minimum sum assured offered by public sector
general insurance companiesis Rs 50,000 and for private sector companies, it is Rs 1
lakh. But for 95 per cent of the policies sold online the sum assured is a minimum Rs 3
lakh, says Yashish Dahiya, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Policybazaar.com.
It is no coincidence that the cost of health care has grown more than exponentially. A
hysterectomy or a cesarean-section cost between Rs 10,000 and Rs 15,000 in the 80s;
today, it will cost not less than Rs 50,000. Angioplasty was a new procedure and there
was no surgery for cataract. There was no MRI scan, only a CT scan. These developed
later but as Dr Dilip Sarada, Indian Medical Association, State President, Maharashtra,
points out, "As new technology was introduced, the cost for medical procedures also
increased. The cost has increased multi-fold due to corporate hospitals. It is not feasible
to run a small hospital of four to five beds, due to expenses for land, infrastructure and
staff salaries."
A report by Marsh India pegs medical inflation at just over 18 per cent. Where
consumers used to buy policies of Rs 1 lakh sum assured, today they are willing to pay
premiums of Rs 1 lakh, for policies with sum assured of Rs 1 crore, says Divya Gandhi,
head of general insurance & principal officer at Emkay Insurance Brokers.

Health insurance started as a cover for individuals and their family. It offered
only reimbursement for hospitalisation treatment. There were sub-limits or
caps on every single item such as surgeon's fees, surgical and other
procedures, room rent and for specific ailments. Towards the late 80s, group
policy, or what was popularly known as Mediclaim was introduced. The term
continues to be used as a synonym for health insurance policies.
In the 1990s, the sub-limits were removed as healthcare started to evolve. As
life expectancy increased and the number of private hospitals mushroomed,
more people began to buy health insurance.
In 2001, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) introduced
regulations for Third Party Administrators (TPAs). TPAs provided the link
between hospitals and companies and paved the way for companies to offer
the cashless option in their products.
The advent of the service sector in India, particularly, the Information
Technology sector saw the growth of group health insurance, as employers
offered health insurance as a benefit to retain employees.
According to the Health Insurance Data Report 2010-11, the number of
policies in 2003-04 was 22,65,451, more than doubling to 77,42,076 by 201011. The average premium per policy in 2003-04 was Rs 4,166 and the number
of people insured per policy was four. By 2010-11, the premium per policy had
increased to Rs 14,120 and the number of people insured per policy was six.
In 2006, the first standalone company was set up, Star Health Insurance.
There are now five such companies. They are Max Bupa Health Insurance,
Religare Health Insurance, Apollo Munich, Cygna TTK and Star Health.
In 2008, the central government launched the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima
Yojana a social assistance scheme for below the poverty line families.
Subsequently, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra started statesponsored insurance schemes. These helped widen the reach of health
insurance.
Towards the end of 2009-10, companies started introducing innovations like
covers for maternity and wellness treatments. Today, there are covers for preexisting illness (albeit at a higher premium), day-care procedures where no
hospitalisation is required, family critical illnesses and products with covers
as large as Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1 crore.
An important step by Irda was the definition of pre-existing illness which
made coverage of these after a maximum of four years a standard procedure.
Allowing of portability of policies, the option to transfer to another company
without any disruption in the waiting period, was another important feature,

introduced in 2011.
Segar Sampathkumar, general manager, New India Assurance says the health
insurance sector saw an annual growth of over 35 per cent in gross premiums
between 2001-02 and 2013-14. "Although there was a slight tapering in the
last two years, more and more hospitalisation will be funded by insurance as
penetration improves," he says.
Although corporate health care does offer people better access to medical
treatment, there remains the issue of whether it could push up costs, with
over-investigation by doctors becoming as common as it has in the US. More
to the point, perhaps, most of this evolution in health insurance does little to

India to provide
insurance, cash incentives for girl-child
improve the average Indian's access to health care.

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The Ministry for Women and Child Development is finalising a scheme to provide insurance cover for every girl-child
from a below the poverty line (BPL) family, as incentive for bringing her up and providing her with good education and
healthcare
The Indian government is floating a scheme which will give up to Rs 1.4 lakh each to families with daughters who
reach adulthood, in the 10 poorest districts of five states that have the worst sex ratio, including Punjab and Haryana.
The Conditional Cash and Non-Cash Transfer Scheme will be formally announced by the Ministry of Women and
Child Development, on January 26.
According to Nandita Mishra, Joint Secretary in the ministry, under the scheme being floated jointly with the Life
Insurance Corporation of India, Rs 1 lakh will be given to families that guarantee their girls reaching the age of 18.
Only families that fulfil the following conditions with respect to a girl-child -- birth and registration, immunisation,
school enrolment, and marriage after 18 years -- will receive the cash incentives.
Bihar , Orissa and Jharkhand are the three other states -- besides Punjab and Haryana, where female foeticide and
infanticide are rampant -- where the scheme will be offered.
However, while Rs 1 lakh will automatically accrue to the parents of girl-children in eligible districts who are unmarried
when they turn 18, they must fulfil certain criteria pertaining to their children's welfare. Parents must ensure that their
daughters have an 80% school attendance record and that they are not being forced into marriage before they reach
the age of 19.
Under the scheme, the government will provide cash transfers of Rs 5,000 at the time of the girl's birth and
registration; Rs 500 after every three months, for immunisation; Rs 2,500 at the time of her school enrolment; Rs
1,000 every year till the completion of primary school; Rs 5,000 at the time of enrolment and Rs 1,500 every year till

the completion of elementary school; and Rs 7,500 for enrolment and Rs 1,500 every year till the girl completes her
secondary and higher secondary education. The rest of the money will be handed over at the age of 18, if the girl is
unmarried.
The project will first be implemented as a pilot in 11 blocks of the country. While 10 of the chosen blocks are
economically backward, the ministry has chosen one prosperous block -- Sirhind in Fatehgarh Sahib (Punjab) that
has the lowest child sex ratio of 766 per 1,000 males, according to the 2001 census. The inclusion of a rich block will
enable a comparative study among outcomes in economically varying blocks, says Mishra.
This is only the latest in a number of cash incentive schemes to promote the survival and welfare of the girl-child in
India. The ultimate objective is to change society's perceptions about the girl-child, thus curbing the rampant practice
of sex-selective abortion and infanticide that has led to a steadily declining child sex ratio.
Women and Child Development Minister Renuka Chowdhury said the ministry had proposed the scheme during the
Eleventh Plan.
The scheme's most significant component is insurance coverage to the tune of Rs 1 lakh to ensure the survival of the
girl-child. The ministry believes that huge insurance cover in addition to cash transfers at birth will force families to
view girl-children more positively. Poverty is a huge constraint in the way of birth and development of a girl-child. We
realised that well-designed financial incentives can transform negative perceptions regarding daughters and make
people view them as assets. Conditional cash transfers can effect behaviour changes, says Mishra.
Similar conditional cash transfer schemes have been in operation in Brazil, Nicaragua, Columbia, Chile and Mexico.
Brazil has a national programme that transfers $ 19 every month to an estimated 5 million families. The cash is
transferred on condition that a minimum school attendance of 85% is ensured for children between six and 15 years
of age.