New Delhi: Insurance watchdog IRDA chairman J Hari Narayan today said HIV-affected persons should not be denied claims for aliments which are not connected with the deadly disease.
"Insurance companies should not deny the claims of HIV positive people for the ailments which are not directly attributed to that disease," Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) Chairman J Hari Narayan said while addressing the Fifth Health Insurance Summit here.
He also urged the insurers to re-examine the purpose of exclusion of HIV positive people from insurance schemes.
At present, only one company in the country provides health insurance cover to AIDS patients. IRDA wants other insurance companies to expand the scope of their health insurance scheme to cover HIV positive people.
Referring to financial implications, Narayan said inclusion of HIV positive people under health insurance scheme for other ailments would not create any viability issue.
According to National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), the number of persons affected by HIV positive virus in the country was 23.9 lakh during 2008-09.
PTI
