Are diseases like white and black fungus covered under Health Insurance?

Our lives have been profoundly affected since the coronavirus outbreak started. As soon as we thought we had everything under control, the second wave of COVID-19 slammed into us. Another deadly illness emerged as doctors worked feverishly to save patients, overcome by a large number of cases. Infection with the black fungus, known academically as Mucormycosis, began to imperil persons who had beaten the sickness. It wasn’t long before healthcare customers started to ask if their policies would cover COVID-19 survivors with pre-existing ailments such as diabetes, kidney problems, and cancer. Because this is a rare fungal ailment, let’s speak about it and determine whether your health insurance covers treatment.

What is a Black Fungal Disease?

 COVID-19 survivors are more likely to get the black fungus, or Mucormycosis, a rare but fatal condition. Mucormycetes, which are molds in soil and decaying vegetables and fruits, are responsible for the condition known as black fungus, sometimes known as mucormycosis. Fungal spores may enter the body via the nose or the lungs, but they can also enter through the skin through a cut, burn, or another lesion. The molds that cause this illness are known as mucormycetes. According to statistics from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, it is commonly acknowledged that these fungi flourish in soil and decaying organic materials. This condition affects people who have pre-existing health problems or who use drugs that impair the immune system, making them more prone to the illness.

Doctors believe that the use of steroids, a life-saving drug for severely ill Covid-19 patients, is the reason. Some of the damage caused by the body’s immune system going into overdrive to combat the coronavirus might be avoided by taking steroids. When the immune system is compromised, and blood sugar levels are high, black fungus grows. Fungi thrive in urban areas due to poor air quality and an abundance of dust.

What is White Fungus?

Immunocompromised individuals, such as those who are COVID-19 positive, have unmanaged diabetes, or those who take large doses of steroids, are at risk of contracting the White Fungus disease.

The black fungus and white fungus symptoms are pretty similar. One will experience symptoms such as tiredness, nausea, and a runny nose as a consequence of this sickness. If the fungus enters the brain, the patient is susceptible to get a stroke, hemorrhage, or even death.

Protecting Against Black and White Fungus

As India fights back against the second wave of coronavirus, fungal infections—both black and white fungus—are becoming increasingly widespread. Furthermore, several nations have proclaimed specific ailments to be epidemics. These ailments afflict patients who have either recovered from or are currently fighting COVID-19.

Six Indian states have declared a public health emergency and are taking precautionary steps to safeguard their population from the spread of these deadly illnesses. Furthermore, private hospital care for many disorders is costly and may be too expensive for many.

Both these diseases are classified as deadly and may cause significant medical problems, including blindness. In addition, diabetes and high doses of steroid medication aggravate this illness.

The candida yeast, one of the most prevalent causes of white fungus (also known as candidiasis), is to blame for the sickness. Infection risk is increased by a lack of immunity and pre-existing medical conditions such as HIV, cancer, and diabetes. People are particularly vulnerable since molds may be readily inhaled and spread to vital organs such as the lungs, kidneys, brain, and so on.

Does your Health Insurance cover Black & White Fungus? 

Treatment expenses for black and white fungus are covered by default under all comprehensive health insurance plans since these diseases are inherent and hence do not need a particular health plan to be covered. Therefore, policyholders can take a sigh of relief as you do not need to acquire a separate policy to pay the expenses of a treatment since all comprehensive health insurance policies cover black and white fungus.

Treatment for black fungus is now covered by state health insurance programs in some states. Patients with black fungus would be covered up to a maximum of 1.5 lakh under health insurance plans such as the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana. In addition, residents of Rajasthan can file claims on their medical bills at private hospitals according to the state administration’s Chiranjeevi Yojana Insurance Scheme.

Furthermore, if you are covered by your employer’s group insurance or a super top-up plan, your coverage will cover fungi-related illnesses. Even though large doses of steroids used to treat covid patients have been related to mucormycosis, covid-specific insurance coverage does not cover treatment for mucormycosis since the ailment is yet unknown.

Make sure your Claim is not Rejected

Since comprehensive health insurance policies cover the treatment for black and white fungus, you may utilize your health insurance claim by informing your insurer of your hospitalization after getting admitted to a hospital that is listed with the insurer’s network and accepts cashless treatment. Ensure that you have all of the relevant documents on hand so that the claim settlement process proceeds as easily and soon as possible.

To make sure your claim request is not rejected, here are a few tips that will ensure your claims get approved without any trouble.

• Reading the policy documents after purchasing the health insurance policy shall prove to be useful as it helps to understand its features, inclusions, exclusions, waiting period, and claim procedure.
• Make sure to file the claim request within 7 days of discharge from the hospital.
• Remember to collect all the relevant documents about your treatment from the hospital, which may be required to be produced to the insurer for verification.
• Last but most importantly, understand the claim settlement ratio of health insurance companies while deciding to buy an appropriate policy. A high CSR means the insurer has a high claim settlement rate, whereas a low CSR means a high claim rejection rate.

As you’re taking every precaution to avoid illness, make sure you’re also protecting your finances with a comprehensive health insurance plan. It is always a good idea to check with your insurance company to see whether they cover white and black fungus to avoid unnecessary last-minute claim rejections.