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/Critical Illness Cover
Find what matters most to you.
Pick a coverage concern and see its exact policy terms, compared side-by-side across top Indian health insurance plans.
36 features mapped
6 coverage topics
Start here8
The concerns that cost the most when a plan gets them wrong
Step 1Coverage Directory
Every category, decoded
All 6 coverage topics in one place - start with the worry on your mind, and open the features that decide it.
Step 2Feature Library
Cancer & serious illness
Every feature behind Cancer & serious illness, deciders first - pick one to see how the plans differ.
2 more features here look much the same across the plans we cover - they rarely decide the choice.
Step 3Plan Comparison
What is Critical Illness Cover in health insurance?
Pays you a lump sum of money if you are diagnosed with a serious illness like cancer, heart attack, or stroke. Unlike regular health insurance that pays the hospital directly, this money comes straight to you - use it for treatment, household bills, or time off work.
Every plan, ranked11 · 1 strong · 3 standard · 1 limited · 6 not covered
HDFC ERGOStrongOptima Secure · Optima-SelectOptional - 51 illnesses
Strong
It is sold only as a paid add-on: my:health Critical Illness pays a lump sum on diagnosis of any of 51 listed critical illnesses, with a sum insured you choose from ₹1 lakh up to ₹5 Cr. A second add-on, Serious Illness Booster, pays actual medical expenses instead of a lump sum.
Coverage detailstap any row to understand it
How it's coveredOptional add-on
Number of Critical Illnesses Covered51 illnesses
Payout TypeLump Sum on Diagnosis
Minimum Sum Insured Option (INR)₹1 Lakh
Maximum Sum Insured Option (INR)₹5 Cr
Watch out
The lump-sum add-on is a separate contract and its own terms, so the waiting period and survival period are set in that document, not in the Optima Secure wording. Ask for the add-on wording before you buy.
ICICI LombardStandardElevateOptional - 20 illnesses
Standard
Sold as an optional cover. On first diagnosis of any of 20 named critical illnesses - cancer, first heart attack, stroke, kidney failure, major transplant and more - Elevate pays a lump sum of up to ₹50,00,000 in cash, over and above your hospital cover. You can buy it only between the ages of 18 and 50, and it pays once in your lifetime.
Coverage detailstap any row to understand it
How it's coveredOptional add-on
Number of Critical Illnesses Covered20 illnesses
Payout TypeLump Sum on Diagnosis
Maximum Sum Insured Option (INR)₹50 Lakh
Survival Period Post-Diagnosis (Days)0 days
Watch out
A 90-day waiting period applies from the start of the cover, and the wording sets no survival period after diagnosis. No claim is paid if the critical illness is a consequence of a pre-existing disease.
Niva BupaStandardReAssure 3.0 · ClassicOptional - 20 illnesses
Standard
Critical Illness is an optional benefit you buy on top of the plan. It pays a lump sum, up to INR 3 Crore, if you are diagnosed with one of the 20 illnesses listed in Annexure IV - cancer of specified severity, heart attack, stroke, major organ transplant and others. It pays once in your lifetime, and the diagnosis must happen in India.
Coverage detailstap any row to understand it
How it's coveredOptional add-on
Number of Critical Illnesses Covered20 illnesses
Payout TypeLump Sum on Diagnosis
Maximum Sum Insured Option (INR)₹3 Cr
Survival Period Post-Diagnosis (Days)30 days
Watch out
Two timing rules decide whether a claim is paid: the illness must first occur and be diagnosed after 90 days from the start of your first policy with Niva Bupa, and you must survive 30 days after the diagnosis.
Aditya BirlaStandardActiv One · VYTLOptional - 20 illnesses
Standard
Critical Illness is an optional cover you buy on top of the base plan, on any variant. It pays a lump sum of 10, 15, 20 or 25 lakhs on first diagnosis of one of 20 listed illnesses, and that money comes to you rather than to the hospital. It pays once: after a claim is admitted, the cover is not renewed for that person.
Coverage detailstap any row to understand it
How it's coveredOptional add-on
Number of Critical Illnesses Covered20 illnesses
Payout TypeLump Sum on Diagnosis
Minimum Sum Insured Option (INR)₹10 Lakh
Maximum Sum Insured Option (INR)₹25 Lakh
Watch out
The cover ends for that person once a claim is admitted, so a second critical illness later gets nothing from this benefit. The lump sum is capped at the 25 lakhs option even if your health cover is far larger.
HDFC ERGOLimitedOptima RestoreOptional - 50 illnesses
Limited
The base policy pays no lump sum for a critical illness. HDFC ERGO offers my:health Critical Illness, covering 50 critical illnesses, as a paid add-on alongside Optima Restore, and a Critical Advantage rider for planned treatment abroad for 8 listed major illnesses. Neither document carries the add-on's own terms.
Coverage detailstap any row to understand it
How it's coveredOptional add-on
Number of Critical Illnesses Covered50 illnesses
Watch out
The add-on's waiting period, survival period, sum insured and payout terms live in a separate document, so read that before buying. Inside Optima Restore itself the only critical-illness benefit is a written second opinion.
Star HealthNot coveredSuper StarNot in this plan, and not sold as an add-on
Not covered
Super Star pays no lump sum on the diagnosis of a critical illness. The 54 illnesses listed in Annexure I do one job here: if the proposer, who must also be an Insured Person, is first diagnosed with one, the renewal premium for the next Policy Year is waived, once in the life of the policy. Treatment itself is paid as an ordinary hospitalisation claim.
Coverage detailstap any row to understand it
How it's coveredNot covered
Watch out
A premium waiver is not a payout. It covers one Policy Year of premium, once ever, and nothing is paid to you in cash on diagnosis.
Star HealthNot coveredStar ComprehensiveNot in this plan, and not sold as an add-on
Not covered
This policy does not pay a lump sum on diagnosis of cancer, a heart attack or a stroke. It pays hospital bills as they are incurred. The only lump-sum payment anywhere in it is for accidental death or permanent total disablement under Section II.23.
Coverage detailstap any row to understand it
How it's coveredNot covered
Star HealthNot coveredFamily Health OptimaNot in this plan, and not sold as an add-on
Not covered
This plan does not pay a lump sum on the diagnosis of a critical illness.
Coverage detailstap any row to understand it
How it's coveredNot covered
Care HealthNot coveredCare AdvantageNot in this plan, and not sold as an add-on
Not covered
Care Advantage does not offer critical illness cover. There is no lump-sum payment on diagnosis of cancer, a heart attack or a stroke - the policy pays hospital bills, up to your Sum Insured. None of the 13 optional covers adds a critical illness benefit.
Coverage detailstap any row to understand it
How it's coveredNot covered
Care HealthNot coveredCare SupremeNot in this plan, and not sold as an add-on
Not covered
This product does not offer a critical illness benefit. There is no lump-sum payout on diagnosis of cancer, heart attack or stroke, and no critical illness rider is offered with it. Serious illnesses are paid the usual way, as hospitalisation expenses against your Sum Insured.
Coverage detailstap any row to understand it
How it's coveredNot covered
Star HealthNot coveredStar Health AssureNot in this plan, and not sold as an add-on
Not covered
This policy does not pay a lump sum on diagnosis of a critical illness. It is an indemnity plan - it pays your hospital bills as they are incurred. The prospectus names one add-on cover, Star Flexi, but its terms are not part of these documents.
Coverage detailstap any row to understand it
How it's coveredNot covered
Step 4Shortlist
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Or read one we prepared for Critical Illness CoverSuper Star vs Optima RestoreSuper Star vs Star ComprehensiveOptima Restore vs Star Comprehensive
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Each one has its own page - what it means, and how every plan handles it.