World Senior Citizens Day: Data Shows Over 23% Hospital Claims Now Come From The Elderly

As the country observes World Senior Citizens Day today (21 August), new numbers reveal an unsettling reality: the elderly in India are shouldering a growing share of the nation's health burden, and many remain underprepared financially.

According to internal claims data from Tata AIG, more than 23 per cent of all hospitalisation claims in the past year came from people above 55 years of age. What stands out is not just the volume of these claims but their severity. Over half of all critical illness claims, for conditions like cancer, cardiac disease, and kidney failure, are concentrated in this age group.

The situation is grim since these are not routine hospital visits, but medical emergencies that often require ICU stays, bypass surgeries in case of heart-related issues, or dialysis for chronic kidney disease. These treatments can turn very costly, running to several thousands to lakhs.

Rising Costs of Critical Treatments

A recent Policybazaar analysis covered by Outlook Money found that the cost of undergoing surgery in India has surged by over 250 to 300 per cent over the last decade. For instance, a heart transplant would cost somewhere around Rs 34 lakh today, contrary to Rs 9.8 lakh a decade earlier.

Cancer surgery now costs approximately Rs 50.8 lakh, this is nearly four times the cost in 2013, which was somewhere around Rs 13.5 lakh. Kidney Transplants too have increased from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 18.2 lakh during the same period.

The financial strain is obvious. Medical inflation has pushed treatment costs for chronic and critical illnesses up by 10 to 15 per cent over the past three years. For the elderly who are living on pensions or fixed retirement funds, such high bills can override the resources they have in savings. Many families end up dipping into savings or taking on loans to cover sudden medical expenses.

Why Adequate Health Coverage Is Needed

This gap is not only about affordability but also how prepared the elderly are. A large number of senior citizens delay buying health insurance, often waiting until health problems appear.

Others carry policies with low coverage limits that fail to match the high costs of today's treatments. There is also limited awareness about specialised senior citizen health plans, many of which are structured to cover common age-related risks more effectively.

Insurance experts point out that coverage cannot stop at retirement. If anything, it becomes more crucial in the later years of life because the treatment costs, as listed above, can be higher.

What do the elderly need to keep in mind when looking at health policies?

When looking at 'adequate' health coverage, the seniors must ensure that the policies have these three key things in place:

• Higher coverage limits

• Critical illnesses should be included

• Access to wide cashless hospital networks

All these factors combined can significantly reduce the financial shock of sudden illness and its treatments.

As lifespans increase with better treatments, the cost of staying healthy is rising in tandem. For India's elderly, the promise of peaceful silver years depends not just on family and leisure but on having strong financial protection against any medical uncertainty.