Mumbai: Medicine Shoppe, the world's largest pharmacy store chain, in association with Bajaj Allianz Insurance, has drawn up a scheme whereby it will provide its customers critical care insurance for the treatment of 10 critical illnesses. The insurance scheme is linked to purchases of medicines from Medicine Shoppe outlets.

The scheme is available only to people in the age group of five-25 years. Under the scheme a customer has to make purchases worth Rs 5,000 at any time within a period of six months in order to get a cover of Rs 10,000 for the beneficiary.

After this, for all additional purchases collectively valued at Rs 5,000 within six months, free insurance of Rs 10,000 will be offered, subject to a ceiling of Rs 2 lakh insurance cover at any given point of time per beneficiary.

The insurance cover is available for a period of one year from the date of commencement. The illnesses covered under the scheme are cancer, stroke, first heart attack, coronary artery disease requiring surgery, multiple sclerosis, renal failure, major organ transplant, aorta surgery, paralysis and primary pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Says Medicine Shoppe India managing director Viraj Gandhi: ''India is the only country on our global network where we have launched [this kind of] insurance. We are trying to take insurance products to customers even in small towns, where insurance is virtually unknown, through our retail network.''

This is the second such insurance scheme that Medicine Shoppe has launched in India together with Bajaj Allianz, the first being a personal accident cover insurance scheme.

Bajaj Allianz CEO Sam Ghosh says all claims will be processed within a fortnight, with no questions asked. ''The benefit amount is payable as advance, and upon diagnosis of the disease. All the insured has to do is to submit the claim form along with the certificate from the specialist confirming the illness.''

Gandhi says about 1,000 people have already been insured under the personal accident cover scheme and in the past two weeks, since the critical care insurance policy has been launched, 50 people have shown interest.