Since September 1, 2025, Bajaj Allianz Health Insurance Policy holders in North India will have a large shock as more than 15,000 hospitals, including major chains such as Max Healthcare and Medanta, stop offering cashless treatment features.

Flashpoint comes after a long -running dispute between hospitals and the insurer. The Association of Healthcare Providers of India (AHPI), which represents many private hospitals, has said that Bajaj Allianz has not modified reimbursement rates over the years, even though medical costs in India are increasing 7-8% every year.

Hospitals argue that the cost of drugs, equipment, employees’ salaries and utilities has increased, they continue to reimburse at the old rates.

They also allege that the insurer often cuts payment without proper discussion and delays disposal of claims, leaving hospitals under financial stress.

AHPI Director General Dr. According to Kamadhar Ghani, financial pressure has reached a braking point. He explained that hospitals are being asked to work at old tariff levels, and in some cases they are also reduced, despite the fact that medical inflation makes such practices unstable.

Cashless treatment usually means that hospital bills are fixed directly between the insurer and the hospital, and patients do not need to pay at the time of admission.

This feature typically involves treatment for serious diseases like hospitalization, surgery, cancer or kidney failure, small procedures that do not need to stay overnight, and emergency care such as accidents or trauma cases.

With the return of Bajaj Allianz from the cashless network of these hospitals, patients will now have to bear the advance cost of high-value remedies.

This includes cardiac remedies such as angioplasty and bypass surgery, chemotherapy and radiation such as cancer treatment, orthopedic processes, joint replacement and fracture operations, maternity and newborn care, and long -term dialysis such as regular dialysis for kidney patients.

How will it affect patients?

For families, this is a serious financial blow because such treatment often costs several lakh rupees.

In India, the cost of cardiac surgery is usually between Rs 3 to 7 lakhs, while keeping stents can go up to Rs 3 lakh. A kidney transplant starts at around Rs 5 lakh and can exceed Rs 10 on the basis of hospital and surgeon.

Liver transplant is the most expensive, which is between Rs 20 and Rs 30 lakh anywhere.

For many middle class families, these are quantities that cannot be suddenly arranged, which is why they rely on cashless feature in the first place.

If the deadlock continues, Bajaj Elianz customers will still be able to claim subsequent reimbursement, but they will need to pay hospital bills before filing for refund.

It defeats the main objective of the cashless health cover, which is to protect families from large and sudden medical expenses at the time of treatment.

The patients will be trapped in the middle until the hospital and insurers reach an agreement.

“After all, it is suffering from those patients. The cost of healthcare is increasing every year, and without a cashless cover, families will have to face immediate financial burden,” Dr. Ghani says.