Does following a preventive lifestyle plan reduce my future premium if I have diabetes and how?
If you’re living with diabetes, your health insurance premium usually stays fixed based on your initial risk profile, with insurers rarely reassessing it later. However, a few companies are beginning to explore wellness-linked models that reward preventive lifestyle habits with benefits or incentives.
- Oct 8, 2025,
- Updated Oct 8, 2025 2:29 PM IST
Does following a preventive lifestyle plan reduce my future premium if I have diabetes — and how exactly does it work? Can insurers really recognise the effort I put into managing my health, like maintaining blood sugar levels, exercising regularly, or following a doctor-recommended diet? If I’m consistently healthy over time, will my premium reduce at renewal, or do insurers only offer rewards and wellness benefits instead of an actual discount? And what kind of preventive measures or tracking do I need to show for it to make a difference?
Advice by Anuradha Sriram, Chief Actuarial Officer, Aditya Birla Health Insurance
Suppose you’re living with diabetes and wondering whether following a preventive lifestyle plan could lower your future health insurance premiums. In that case, the answer depends on how insurers assess and price medical risk. Traditionally, Indian health insurance companies have followed a fixed underwriting approach, where the premium is determined at the start of the policy based on your disclosed health conditions.
Suppose you have diabetes, hypertension, or another chronic illness. In that case, any loading or co-payment applied at inception usually continues for the lifetime of the policy, regardless of how well you manage your condition later. This is because once the risk is underwritten, insurers rarely re-evaluate it at renewal.
However, the industry landscape is beginning to shift. Some insurers are experimenting with wellness-linked plans that encourage preventive care through rewards and incentives tied to physical activity, diet tracking, and regular health check-ups.
Traditionally, Indian health insurers adopt a fixed underwriting approach:
> If you disclose a pre-existing condition such as diabetes, hypertension, or asthma, any premium loading or co-pay applied at inception continues for the lifetime of the policy.
> Even if you successfully manage your condition, insurers generally do not reduce premiums at renewal, since the risk pricing is locked in at the start. However, the market is evolving:
> Wellness-linked models are beginning to reward preventive lifestyles.
> While this does not reduce the base premium, it effectively offsets the cost of insurance through rewards—particularly beneficial for individuals managing chronic conditions like diabetes.
In essence: Current industry practice does not lower future premiums for well-managed chronic conditions, but wellness-linked rewards are paving the way for a more progressive, preventive approach
Traditionally, Indian health insurers adopt a fixed underwriting approach. If a policyholder discloses a pre-existing condition such as diabetes, hypertension, or asthma any premium loading or co-pay applied at inception continues for the lifetime of the policy. This means that even if the individual manages their condition well over time, insurers typically do not reduce premiums in future renewals. The rationale is that once the risk has been underwritten, the pricing remains consistent unless the insurer has specifically built a mechanism to reassess health risks periodically.
That said, some insurers are beginning to take a more progressive approach by linking premiums or rewards to preventive lifestyle management. For example, Aditya Birla Health Insurance (ABHI) offers a unique benefit where customers can earn back up to 100% of their premium by meeting activity goals (e.g., walking 10,000 steps a day for 325 days in a year).
While this does not reduce the base premium, it effectively offsets the cost of insurance through rewards—particularly beneficial for individuals managing chronic conditions like diabetes because such models not only incentivise healthier behavior but also directly benefits individuals with chronic conditions by encouraging sustained activity that can improve long-term outcomes.
Does following a preventive lifestyle plan reduce my future premium if I have diabetes — and how exactly does it work? Can insurers really recognise the effort I put into managing my health, like maintaining blood sugar levels, exercising regularly, or following a doctor-recommended diet? If I’m consistently healthy over time, will my premium reduce at renewal, or do insurers only offer rewards and wellness benefits instead of an actual discount? And what kind of preventive measures or tracking do I need to show for it to make a difference?
Advice by Anuradha Sriram, Chief Actuarial Officer, Aditya Birla Health Insurance
Suppose you’re living with diabetes and wondering whether following a preventive lifestyle plan could lower your future health insurance premiums. In that case, the answer depends on how insurers assess and price medical risk. Traditionally, Indian health insurance companies have followed a fixed underwriting approach, where the premium is determined at the start of the policy based on your disclosed health conditions.
Suppose you have diabetes, hypertension, or another chronic illness. In that case, any loading or co-payment applied at inception usually continues for the lifetime of the policy, regardless of how well you manage your condition later. This is because once the risk is underwritten, insurers rarely re-evaluate it at renewal.
However, the industry landscape is beginning to shift. Some insurers are experimenting with wellness-linked plans that encourage preventive care through rewards and incentives tied to physical activity, diet tracking, and regular health check-ups.
Traditionally, Indian health insurers adopt a fixed underwriting approach:
> If you disclose a pre-existing condition such as diabetes, hypertension, or asthma, any premium loading or co-pay applied at inception continues for the lifetime of the policy.
> Even if you successfully manage your condition, insurers generally do not reduce premiums at renewal, since the risk pricing is locked in at the start. However, the market is evolving:
> Wellness-linked models are beginning to reward preventive lifestyles.
> While this does not reduce the base premium, it effectively offsets the cost of insurance through rewards—particularly beneficial for individuals managing chronic conditions like diabetes.
In essence: Current industry practice does not lower future premiums for well-managed chronic conditions, but wellness-linked rewards are paving the way for a more progressive, preventive approach
Traditionally, Indian health insurers adopt a fixed underwriting approach. If a policyholder discloses a pre-existing condition such as diabetes, hypertension, or asthma any premium loading or co-pay applied at inception continues for the lifetime of the policy. This means that even if the individual manages their condition well over time, insurers typically do not reduce premiums in future renewals. The rationale is that once the risk has been underwritten, the pricing remains consistent unless the insurer has specifically built a mechanism to reassess health risks periodically.
That said, some insurers are beginning to take a more progressive approach by linking premiums or rewards to preventive lifestyle management. For example, Aditya Birla Health Insurance (ABHI) offers a unique benefit where customers can earn back up to 100% of their premium by meeting activity goals (e.g., walking 10,000 steps a day for 325 days in a year).
While this does not reduce the base premium, it effectively offsets the cost of insurance through rewards—particularly beneficial for individuals managing chronic conditions like diabetes because such models not only incentivise healthier behavior but also directly benefits individuals with chronic conditions by encouraging sustained activity that can improve long-term outcomes.