Smokers seem to have a higher perception towards health insurance, a recent survey by ICICI Lombard ahead of ‘World No-Tobacco Day’ has revealed.
About 79 per cent of respondents (smokers) agreed they had a health insurance cover, and 55 per cent of the rest 21 per cent who did not have any such health insurance cover were planning to buy one in the next six months. In all, 64 per cent of respondents believed that smokers needed to have a health insurance cover.
According to the survey, about 83 per cent of women smokers had a health cover compared to men (77 per cent). The number of smokers with health insurance cover in the metro or tier-1 city was more (82 per cent) than in the tier-2 cities (72 per cent).
Typically, those above 30 years of age were more likely to have a health insurance policy (85 per cent) than those in the younger age group (70 per cent for those in the 21-30 years age group).
The survey further revealed that 90 per cent of those smokers surveyed with pre-medical conditions had a health cover compared to 71 per cent of those who did not.
One interesting finding was that respondents who found it difficult to quit smoking were more mindful of their smoking habits while purchasing health insurance.
A huge 83 per cent respondents had also disclosed their smoking habits while purchasing health insurance policies, the survey revealed. Findings further revealed that 81 per cent of the respondents were willing to pay an additional amount of 20 per cent on premium because of their smoking habits, signifying the difficulty they found in quitting the habit.
The findings also highlighted some interesting habits that triggered smoking:
About 60 per cent of respondents told surveyors that they started smoking between 18 and 25 years of age. About 56 per cent said they took to smoking out of curiosity, and 67 per cent mentioned they were minors when they started smoking. About 65 per cent of the respondents were staying away from their families; 55 per cent started smoking under social influence; 43 per cent cited stress or anxiety as the reason they started smoking, and 57 per cent of the smokers were in the 18-25 years of age group, the survey revealed.
