Medical emergencies are always a nightmare for common people.

Medical visits, especially for surgeries, are very expensive. Not everyone has the resources to cover up the expenses. Surgeries, post operative care and other follow ups costs adds burden to the financial crisis of the common man.

Middle class people specifically cannot afford to accumulate such large expenses in short notice.

Are you someone looking to get a surgery, and wondering what could be the monetary impact of it, or how you would manage that?

No more worries. Mykare Health is here to discuss the monetary impact of surgeries on an average household and feasible solutions.

How Can Surgery Cost Affect People?

The sudden requirement of huge amounts of money can affect the life of people who barely meet up with the standard of life and who couldn’t even meet the requirements of a family.

These people, like a hanging bar, are trying to balance the needs with their incomes.

Let’s understand how these financial emergencies affect people psychologically.

1.Immediate financial impacts

Average and below average people most probably would not have stash money to cover up the unexpected medical bills.

This will lead to:

• Losing savings meant for other necessities
• Forcing households to compromise on basic needs

2.High-interest loans

Loans are the easiest way to arrange money to fill their immediate needs.But it will leave people in deeper debts.

Many factors force people to depend on high-interest loans. It includes:

• Longer processing time and stricter requirements of government loans
• Limited awareness or accessibility of government loans
• Immediate need over long term interest

3.Lack of Insurance

India has a huge protection gap. Most of the people from the lower half of the society don’t have insurance. So they lack financial security.

• IRDAI and insurance sectors are implementing measures to protect the economically vulnerable people.
• Their vision is to ensure the protection of these families from huge financial liabilities and falling into extreme poverty by providing micro-insurances.

4.Decision under pressure

Lack of economic stability and pressure of securing funds for medical bills can lead to treatment delays or rushed decisions which may not be practical in the long term run.

5.Psychological stress

Stress, anxiety, and a sense of uselessness can arise when the finances can’t be arranged promptly.

For an average/below average household the huge sum of money itself creates a psychological burden.

What is EMI?

EMI can be an option to reduce the immediate and long term debts.

EMI stands for Equated Monthly Installment. Each month at a specified date a fixed amount of money is remitted to the lender by the borrower.

It depends upon multiple factors

• Principal borrowed
• Rate of Interest
• Tenure period
• Monthly/ Annual resting period

EMI is used to pay out both principal and interest in a fixed number of installments.

EMI in healthcare are great to reduce the immediate burden over the treatment expenditures

Eligibility for EMI

Eligibility of EMI varies as per the guidelines of respective financial institutions.

However a basic norm of eligibility criteria includes:

• Credit scores Credit scores indicate the ability and trustworthiness of the borrower to repay the loan. Credit score 720 or higher is generally considered good.

• Income level Regular and stable income also indicates assurances in the repayment of loans. Proofs of income include salary slips, bank account details or income tax returns.

• Age An Indian citizen between 21 and 65 years is considered eligible. It varies based on the lender's interest.

• Existing Debts Existing and uncleared debts are red flags in financial institutions for providing EMI.

• Medical Necessities For Medical EMI they require you to submit necessary medical records. Some financial institutions provide EMI for only certain types of medical procedures.

Benefits of EMI in Healthcare Emergencies

Let’s look into the benefits of EMI in healthcare and surgeries.

1.Flexibility

• Spread costs EMI breaks the financial burden into smaller parts and distributes evenly throughout a span of time.

This makes financial management easier and allows one to escape from long interest debts.

• Manageable payments EMI is like taking a step at a time to get rid of the debt. It helps to convert large expenses into smaller ones.

The payment amounts are small and manageable. It helps you to manage the payments without sacrificing daily expenses.

• Immediate Treatment Hospitals require certain sums to be paid before scheduling surgeries.

Sometimes surgeries are delayed due to the lack of funding. Especially in emergency situations where ‘golden hour’ treatments are required; this may impact the recovery of the patients.

EMI helps to get access to immediate treatment and care without being delayed by lack of funds

• Better options With the financial backing, we can choose the better option in treatments.

For example minimally invasive surgery is better than an open surgery. They require minimum hospital stays and have better and faster recoveries. But they are quite expensive.

Sometimes even if we wish to choose better options, financial capability restricts the choices.

With financial flexibility EMI offers the patient can opt for a safer and better alternative that otherwise would be difficult to afford.

2.Accessibility

• Widely Accepted EMI is now widely accepted in health scenarios. Many hospitals themselves provide EMI facilities to patients by partnering with financial institutions.

This makes EMI a widely accepted payment method.

• No collateral EMI doesn't require collateral security. This makes them convenient in emergencies

• Credit Accessibility

For patients without credit score some financial institutions provide loans that can be repaid in monthly installments like EMI. This can be especially helpful for people whose medical emergencies are not covered under any insurance.

3.Peace of Mind

Medical emergencies and surgeries are never easy to manage. They may affect people physically,emotionally and financially.

Some people can’t afford better choices in treatments due to insufficient financial resources. It affects people psychologically.

Hence, EMI not only relieves financial stress but also psychological stress.

It ensures peace of mind by assuring better medical treatment without adding immediate burden of payment for the treatment.

For many people without a strong financial foundation, the availability of EMI adds a significant difference in the ability to receive the best medical treatments.

EMI by evenly distributing the financial burden over a specific period helps in managing the finances without leading them into higher debts or even to extreme poverty.

EMI in medical emergencies, specifically surgeries, are flexible and accessible options to help them reduce financial stress and achieve peace of mind.