A comparative study of public and private sector health insurers

There have been many good changes in the Indian health insurance industry over the past 10 to 15 years. These include the creation of the regulator IRDA, which helped open the insurance market to private players, the introduction of TPA as a middleman in the health insurance market, the deregulation of premium rates, the entry of standalone health insurers, the creation of the Insurance Information Bureau and the Health Insurance Forum, and regulations to protect policyholders. Because of these changes, the total amount of health insurance premiums go up every year, cashless payments are possible, there are more innovative products on the market at affordable prices, quick services are available, and so on. Along with these good changes, a number of new problems have arisen, such as rising medical costs, an increase in the number of people going to the insurance ombudsman, an increase in the number of claims in the health insurance industry, and a lower level of awareness among the public, which cancels out or lessens the effects of steps taken by authorities to improve the industry, etc.