Health insurance portability enables policyholders to switch insurers without losing accrued benefits such as no claim bonus (NCB) or waiting period credit. According to reports from Mint, the process allows you to shift from existing company to another with better benefits without losing most accumulated renewal benefits. You can initiate the process through an online portability request to the new insurer at least 45 days before renewal of your existing policy is due. Once all documents are received, the company has 15 days to either accept or reject your portability request.
As reported by Mint, IRDAI's rules state that you can switch health insurance providers at the time of policy renewal with a request made 45 days before your existing policy's renewal. The accumulated benefits of the current policy shall be carried forward to the next policy as well. It is essential that you port to the same policy type, meaning you can port a family policy to another family policy only, and a top-up policy to another top-up policy only. Notably, portability is only available at time of policy renewal and cannot be undertaken when the existing health insurance policy is due for renewal or at any time throughout the policy year.
According to Mint reports, there are no specific charges for health insurance portability. You also do not have to pay any additional premium amount to port your health insurance policy. You only need to pay the premium of the new health policy. The process is available for all health insurance plans, but with the same plan type, and you can port your existing mediclaim policy, but only at the time of its renewal.
The Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) in India is driving the adoption of Electronic Health Records (EHR) to streamline health insurance claims processing. Under ABDM, individuals receive a unique Health ID (ABHA) that links all health records, enabling faster claims and improved transparency. EHR systems maintain comprehensive digital records including medical history, laboratory reports, prescriptions, and billing details, which hospitals can instantly share with insurers for real-time verification. This digital integration reduces claim rejections due to incomplete documentation and enables faster cashless claim approvals by eliminating the need for physical paperwork.
As reported by Mint, a health insurance company must acknowledge a portability request within three days of receiving it. However, they need to either accept or reject a portability request within 15 days of receiving all requested documents. In case of any delay, they will have to accept your portability request. You can port your health insurance policy as many times as you like, provided the new insurance company accepts your portability requests, though porting is possible only at the time of existing policy renewal.
