Last updated on: August 7, 2025
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Location of the appropriate health insurance scheme in India will require trudging through a very congested marketplace where various alternatives are available. Amongst them, Care Ultimate Care Plan and ICICI Lombard Elevate Value Plan are the best plans when it comes to people and families with the need to enjoy broad based medical coverage and cashless hospitalization. Care Health Insurance and ICIC Lombard are two large insurers that have strategized these products to suit any health care requirement yet which actually will provide a better value in 2025? This in-depth article compares both plans, and therefore, you will be able to select one of them and make an informed choice about your and your family.
Ultimate Care Plan Care Health Insurance has aligned its Ultimate Care Plan as a strong product in the year 2025. It is custom-made to those who are in need of high sum insured cover and extensive benefits in a single policy. Be it protection against medical inflation, preferring to go to the best hospitals or even special add on covers, the Ultimate Care Plan has attempted to put almost everything in one umbrella.
Did you know? As of 2025, Care Health Insurance became one of the first companies in India to settle claims in more than 26,000 hospitals across the country in under 2 hours cashless.
ICICI Lombard Elevate Value Plan was introduced into the market to provide affordable though inclusive coverage without any expensive hidden costs. It concentrates in flexible health insurance to individuals and families. The plan is unique in 2025 as it provides health-related rewards like wellness, rapid online claims, and benefits like mental health consultation and OPD benefits to meet the modern day health challenges.
These two plans present a number of robust features to the table, however, they are somewhat different in the nature of their focus and depth. It will be well to detail the key highlights.
Expert knowledge “Mental health and outpatient benefits have become the priority of many buyers due to the pandemic. These were much needed covers that have been incorporated in products such as ICICI Lombard Elevate in 2025, according to insurance analyst Ritu Sharma.”
Any policy has its merits and demerits. This is an open account of what each plan would offer and what would otherwise be lost.
Advantages
Disadvantages
Advantages
Disadvantages
Q: Which is the better maternity coverage plan in 2025?
A: The maternity as well as the newborn covers of Care Ultimate are wider than those of Elevate Value, which can include waiting periods or limit.
Some of the key aspects that come to mind when thinking of family plans include coverage of children, maternity, newborns costs, expansive cashless hospitals and money savings.
Feature | Care Ultimate Plan | ICICI Lombard Elevate Value |
---|---|---|
Sum Insured | 6 crore | 2 lakh – 50 lakh |
Room Rent Limit | No sub limit in most versions | |
Maternity Cover Waiting | None | 2 years normal waiting |
Newborn Cover | Day one | After 90 days |
OPD & Mental Health | Available as costly rider | Add on, cost effective |
Wellness Rewards | Limited | Up to 25 percent |
Donor Organ | High cover | Limited |
Cashless Hospital Network | 26,000+ | 20,000+ |
Digital Claim Settlement | 2 hours in selected cities | 2–6 hours pan India |
Premium (Family 2A+2C, 10 lakh SI, 35 yrs) | Rs 32,500 approx. | Rs 25,000 approx. |
Did you know? Most insurers also started adding fitness app steps tracking to their wellness benefits, such as ICICI Lombard, which provides actual incentives to a healthy lifestyle in 2025.
This is one of the dealbreakers of most Indian families and the elderly. The standard waiting period of both plans in pre-existing diseases is usually based on IRDAI regulations.
Although there is no big winner in this case, buyers are able to demand proposals that will cut down waiting by paying extra premiums.
Q: How can we shorten waiting time of pre-existing illnesses in 2025?
A: There are also insurers like these two which permit a paid buyback of waiting period, but which can be costly and they may underwrite medically.
A powerful hospital system and pain free cashless claim process are the 2025 urban policyholders priorities.
There has been enhancement in the digital infrastructure of the two insurers through tracking of claims using mobile apps. According to customers, the Care Health Insurance is stronger in Tier 1 cities whereas, in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, ICICI Lombard scores better in digital ease.
Professional opinion The growth of cashless networks translates to the fact that even smaller cities are enjoying hassle free treatment under either of the two plans, according to Dr. Praveen Rathi, a healthcare policy advisor.
The other place of difference between these plans is on premium affordability. We shall consider projected average expenses in 2025.
In the case of one adult of 30 years of age with 10 lakh as sum insured:
Same sum insured to a senior citizen of the age of 60:
The premiums can differ depending on the city, medical history and on the choices offered.
Q: Will these premiums go up with the age?
A: The premiums increase every year due to age because of increased health risks. The choice of a long-term policy involving a lock-in provides a certain stability in terms of cost.
Both plans within the year 2025 enable buyers to increase their core coverage by adding additional add-ons.
Add-ons are customisable but incur extra money, and hence choose depending on your actual needs.
Did you know? Telemedicine consultations have become an in built cover by many insurers after the COVID 19 infection, where one does not need to visit the OPD in person.
Speed and ease of settlement of claims are critical. The 2024 IRDAI figures show that both insurers had a claim settlement ratio of above 94 percent, which is typically carried over to 2025.
The reviews left by the customers are in favour of ICICI Lombard in terms of app based cashless experience and speedy payment in non metro cities. Care Health has a high rating on in hospital support and responsive helpline in mega hospital chains.
Educated opinion “Policyholders must look at both the claim settlement ratio and actual complaint volumes so as to know the extent to which they can hassle free in the claim settlement process,” says Pune based insurance ombudsman Meenal Joshi.
Whether to or not to buy in 2025 will depend on your personal needs and budget.
A young family might be persuaded to subscribe to the wellness and OPD covers offered by ICICI, whereas the family who has plans to conduct major medical events can be relaxed by the high limits offered by Care Ultimate.
Q1. Between the two different health insurance plans, which one will be more effective in covering OPD in 2025?
ICICI Lombard Elevate Value Plan is more optimal in terms of OPD and mental health cover as an add-on since it gives outpatient benefits to the employees who require the same.
Q2. Is it possible to port my current health insurance to any of them?
Yes, both Care Health and ICICI Lombard permit the porting of another insurer, with the regulations of underwriting and IRDAI.
Q3. Does it have any cover of alternative medicine such as Ayurveda?
Care Ultimate has made it to be a part of the base policy and ICICI Lombard Elevate user is allowed to include it as an add on or check plan details.
Q4. Does both plans include critical illness in 2025?
The two plans provide the critical illness as an add on benefit and within the sum insured though the list of diseases and payout might vary.
Q5. What do I require in order to make claims without cash?
Almost always you require your health card, photo identification and related medical records. In 2025, both insurers are digital uploadable on their apps.
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Written by Prem Anand, a content writer with over 10+ years of experience in the Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance sectors.
Prem Anand is a seasoned content writer with over 10+ years of experience in the Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance sectors. He has a strong command of industry-specific language and compliance regulations. He specializes in writing insightful blog posts, detailed articles, and content that educates and engages the Indian audience.
The content is prepared by thoroughly researching multiple trustworthy sources such as official websites, financial portals, customer reviews, policy documents and IRDAI guidelines. The goal is to bring accurate and reader-friendly insights.
This content is created to help readers make informed decisions. It aims to simplify complex insurance and finance topics so that you can understand your options clearly and take the right steps with confidence. Every article is written keeping transparency, clarity, and trust in mind.
Based on Google's Helpful Content System, this article emphasizes user value, transparency, and accuracy. It incorporates principles of E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness).