Co-branded credit cards have been quite popular in the marketplace but the majority of such cards are launched in collaboration with an airline, loyalty program, retail brand or some popular e-commerce website like Amazon and Flipkart. There are not many credit cards available in the market that focus on helping you with your medical needs and emergencies.
However, a few banks have taken the initiative of launching health focused credit cards to suit your individual medical needs. The popular banks that have come forward include YES Bank, Axis Bank, RBL Bank and SBI. The motive behind such cards is to increase the access to healthcare and medical facilities in need of emergencies. Here we have discussed the health and wellness focused credit cards offered by these popular banks in detail and why it is significant to have such a card, specifically after the adverse COVID-19 pandemic.
Why is it important to have a Health-Focused Credit Card After COVID-19?
The recent spread of Coronavirus pandemic made us realize that medical emergencies truly come unexpected. In such a situation, there is always a possibility that you may find it difficult to arrange cash, specifically when the cost of treatment is expensive. In such a situation, you might require an urgent loan but definitely won’t be having any time for the process. A credit card would come in handy at such times. A credit card is a quick way to pay for medical emergencies as there is no time to wait for a loan approval to come through. Moreover, if such a card comes with additional health benefits, it would be very helpful for your finances.
Top Credit Cards offering Healthcare and Wellness Benefits
| Credit Cards | Annual Fee | Key Health & Wellness Benefit | Minimum Income Required (p.m.) | Base Rewards Rate |
| YES Bank Wellness Credit Card | Rs. 1,999 | 20 Reward Points per Rs. 200 spent on Chemist/ Pharmaceutical stores and Complimentary annual preventive Health Check-up (25 parameters) | Rs. 25,000 | 2% |
| YES Bank Wellness Plus Credit Card | Rs. 2,999 | 30 Reward Points per Rs. 200 spent on Chemist/ Pharmaceutical stores and Complimentary annual preventive Health Check-up (31 parameters) | Rs. 25,000 | 3% |
| Axis Bank Aura Credit Card | Rs. 749 | 4 video doctor consultations free per month via Practo and Rs. 750 worth Decathlon voucher as welcome gift | Contact the bank* | 1% |
| Apollo SBI Credit Card | Rs. 499 | 3X Reward Points on every Rs. 100 spent on all Apollo services and complimentary Apollo Silver Tier Membership | Contact the bank* | 1% |
| RBL Bank Practo Plus Credit Card | Rs. 2,000 | Unlimited online consultations and 1 Practo HealthCash on every Rs. 100 spent | Contact the bank* | 1% |
*The minimum income required for these credit cards will be communicated at the time of sourcing. Kindly contact your bank after successfully submitting your credit card application.
1. YES Bank Wellness Credit Card
YES Bank, in association with Aditya Birla Wellness Pvt. Ltd., has launched a Wellness Card which offers exclusive privileges on self-care, wellness, and lifestyle benefits.
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| Annual Fee | Rs. 1,999 |
| Minimum Income Required | Rs. 25,000 per month |
| Paisabazaar Rating | ★★★ (3/5) |
| Base Reward Rate | 2% |
| Key Feature | 20 Reward Points per Rs. 200 spent on Chemist/ Pharmaceutical stores and Complimentary annual preventive Health Check-up (25 parameters) |
Who should get YES Bank Wellness Credit Card?YES Bank Wellness Credit Card focuses on providing wellness and healthcare benefits which makes it a unique credit card as not many cards available in the market cater to the health & medical requirements of a consumer. If you are someone who wants to enjoy benefits on regular health checkups and fitness, this could be a good choice. Besides, this card offers accelerated reward points on your spends on Chemist/ Pharmaceutical stores, and also on all other purchases. You will get 4 reward points on every Rs.200 spent on all other categories. This means that you can enjoy a base reward rate of 2%. Keeping in mind the comparatively high annual fee of Rs.1,999, the benefits and reward rate of YES Bank Wellness card is quite basic. |
Other Features and Benefits-
- Complimentary annual Eye & Dental Check-up
- Unlimited consultation with General Practitioner, Specialist & Nutritionist through App
- 6 Complimentary Fitness sessions (Gym, Yoga, Zumba, etc.) per month
- 4 Reward Points per Rs. 200 spent on all other categories
- 500 reward points on YES PayNow registration
- Credit Shield cover in case of accidental death of Primary Cardmember
- Dedicated offers across travel, shopping, wellness, and more categories facilitated under YES Privileges
- Interest Rate of 3.5% per month (42% annually) on Revolving Credit, Cash Advances and Overdue Amount
- 1% Fuel surcharge waiver at all fuel stations across India for transactions between Rs. 400 to Rs. 5,000
2. YES Bank Wellness Plus Credit Card
YES Bank in collaboration with Aditya Birla Wellness Private Limited has launched ‘YES BANK Wellness Plus’ Credit Card, which focuses on the holistic health, self-care and wellness of the consumers.
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| Annual Fee | Rs. 2,999 |
| Minimum Income Required | Rs. 25,000 per month |
| Paisabazaar Rating | ★★★ (3/5) |
| Base Reward Rate | 3% |
| Key Feature | 30 Reward Points per Rs. 200 spent on Chemist/ Pharmaceutical stores and Complimentary annual preventive Health Check-up (31 parameters) |
Who should get YES Bank Wellness Plus Credit Card?If you have regular medical expenses and would also like to earn rewards on your medicine related purchase, this card could be a good choice. The card offers a reward rate of 3%, which is decent for a credit card of this fee range. The card also comes with easy redemption options and the reward points can also be redeemed for airlines, which is indeed an added benefit. However the annual fee of Rs. 2,999 might seem a bit tight on the pocket. Also the card does not offer any discount via popular medical chains and hospitals. The insurance benefits of up to Rs. 1 crore offered by the card are quite decent . Overall this card could be a good choice for people with medical needs on an everyday basis. However, if you think that you only need to go to the doctor once in a while, you could definitely get better options as per your spending habits for a lower annual fee. |
Other Features and Benefits-
- Complimentary annual Eye & Dental Check-up
- Unlimited consultation with General Practitioner, Specialist & Nutritionist through App
- 12 Complimentary Fitness sessions (Gym,Yoga,Zumba, etc.) per month
- 6 reward points per Rs. 200 spent on all other categories
- 1,000 reward points on YES PayNow registration
- Redemption of Reward Points against Air Miles (10 Reward Points = 1 InterMile / 1 Club Vistara Point)
- Domestic Lounge access (limited to 2 visits per quarter) for Primary Cardmembers across 30 + Lounges in India
- Life Insurance Cover of Rs. 1 crore for death due to Flight Accidents
- Medical Insurance cover of Rs. 25 lakh for emergency hospitalization when travelling overseas
- Credit Shield cover in case of accidental death of Primary Cardmember
- Interest Rate of 3.5% per month (42% annually) on Revolving Credit, Cash Advances and Overdue Amount
- 1% Fuel surcharge waiver at all fuel stations across India for transactions between Rs. 400 to Rs. 5,000
3. Axis Bank Aura Credit Card
Axis Bank Aura Credit Card is exclusively designed to cater to the health and wellness needs of the individuals. Available at an annual fee of Rs. 749, the card offers unique features that are powered by Poshvine and other specialists such as Decathlon, Practo, Fitternity, IndushealthPlus, 1MG etc.
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| Annual Fee | Rs. 749 |
| Minimum Income Required | Communicated at the time of sourcing |
| Paisabazaar Rating | ★★★ (3/5) |
| Base Reward Rate | 1% |
| Key Feature | 4 video doctor consultations free per month via Practo and Rs. 750 worth Decathlon voucher as welcome gift |
Who should get Axis Bank Aura Credit Card?If you have regular medical expenses and are a frequent user of Decathlon, Practo, Fitternity, IndushealthPlus, 1MG etc. this card could be a good choice. It is possibly targeted at the young adults who have children or elderly parents at home as their medical needs would be higher. You can consider getting this card if you are looking for a health related card at nominal fee, you want medical consultation services and are very much involved in fitness activities and sessions and you wish to earn rewards points along with the health benefits. |
Other Features and Benefits-
- 4 free interactive video fitness sessions
- Access to 16 recorded sessions per month
- Annual discount of up to Rs. 500 on health checkup
- 2 EDGE Reward Points per Rs. 200 on all transactions
- 5X Reward Points per Rs. 200 on all Insurance spends
- 1% fuel surcharge waiver for transactions between Rs. 400 to Rs. 4,000 per month
- 30% discount on nutritional / diet consultation from renowned nutritionists
- Minimum 30% discount on nutritional food
- Up to 20% off at partner restaurants in India
4. Apollo SBI Credit Card
Launched in collaboration with Apollo Hospitals, the Apollo SBI Credit Card is specifically designed to offer healthcare benefits. With this card, you will get an instant discount on select Apollo services and also get extra rewards for using your card at any of the Apollo Hospitals.
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| Annual Fee | Rs. 499 |
| Minimum Income Required | Communicated at the time of sourcing |
| Paisabazaar Rating | ★★★ (3/5) |
| Base Reward Rate | 1% |
| Key Feature | 3X Reward Points on every Rs. 100 spent on all Apollo services and complimentary Apollo Silver Tier Membership |
Who should get Apollo SBI Credit Card?The Apollo SBI Card offers a complimentary Silver Tier Membership to the cardholders. Under this, you will be enjoying the following benefits: 1% of the bill amount as Health Credits (HC) at Apollo Centers, 5% off on non-pharmaceutical products, 10% off on pharmaceutical products and 10% off on Apollo Branded products. Silver Tier is the basic membership which you can get while registering through OneApollo Websites, AskApollo App or by walking into any Apollo Pharmacy Store. The one limitation with the card is that the reward points cannot be redeemed for items against SBI Card’s rewards catalogue. They can only be redeemed to avail services at Apollo Healthcare Centers and related stores only. The annual fee waiver condition is set too high at Rs. 90,000 for a card that does not offer benefits across other categories. To be able to get the waiver, you will need to put more expenses on the card. You can consider getting this card if you visit Apollo for all your medical needs and emergencies. The annual fee waiver condition is set too high at Rs. 90,000 for a card that does not offer benefits across other categories. To be able to get the waiver, you will need to put more expenses on the card. The card is only good for medical services with Apollo Healthcare. |
Other Features and Benefits-
- 500 Reward Points worth Rs. 500 on payment of joining fee
- 1 reward point for every Rs. 200 for all non-fuel retail purchase
- 1 reward point per Rs. 100 for Beauty and Wellness Services
- 2X rewards per Rs. 100 on movies, entertainment and dining
- Direct conversion of reward points into Apollo Health Credits in 1:1 ratio
- Get Apollo vouchers against accumulated reward points
- Save upto Rs. 2713 on Annual Spend of Rs. 4 Lakh
5. RBL Bank Practo Plus Credit Card
With RBL Practo Plus Credit Card, the cardholders will be able to avail 24*7 doctor consultation for themselves and family members, earn HealthCash on everyday spends and many more benefits.
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| Annual Fee | Rs. 2,000 |
| Minimum Income Required | Communicated at the time of sourcing |
| Paisabazaar Rating | ★★★ (3/5) |
| Base Reward Rate | 1% |
| Key Feature | Unlimited online consultations and 1 Practo HealthCash on every Rs. 100 spent |
Who should get RBL Practo Plus Credit Card?RBL Bank Practo Plus Credit Card offers benefits like unlimited online consultations, cashbacks in the form of HealthCash, free health checkups etc. The card offers HealthCash for spends which can be used on Practo app for availing services like ordering medicine, tests, online consultations etc. which is only beneficial for Practo users. Given that this card mainly focuses on health benefits, the features are very limited. There is no spend based reversal criteria for joining and renewal fee on this card and hence you have to compulsorily shell out Rs. 2,000 each year. This card doesn’t justify the higher joining and renewal fee compared to other co-branded credit cards that were launched recently. Unavailability of flat cashback, limited option to redeem rewards and only the first year benefit of unlimited online consultation makes the card a not so popular option. |
Other Features and Benefits-
- Free health check-up for cardholder and family members
- Free Full Body Health Checkup that will give you an update on the status of your health
- 1 HealthCash = 1 Rupee (HealthCash will be automatically credited monthly on your Practo account)
- 2 complimentary Domestic airport lounge access every quarter
- Free home sample pick-up and get e-report in 24 hours
Bottom Line
Although rare in number, heath credit cards available in the market offer protection against a variety of medical exigencies. Even though one can never guess when a medical emergency might strike, having a credit card that covers your expenses helps you stay prepared in the moment of need. It is still advisable to do a thorough research of the cards based on your medical history.
