NORKA Care Premium Shock: High Court Orders Decision Within Six Weeks
NORKA Care premium controversy centres on concerns over the increased cost of coverage for non-resident Keralites. The Kerala High Court has set a six-week deadline for a decision on the matter.
NORKA Care premium hike dispute has reached the Kerala High Court, which has directed the authorities to take a decision within six weeks.
NEW DELHI, NORKA Care: Kerala High Court has directed the state’s Non-Resident Keralites’ Affairs (NORKA) Department to consider a formal complaint against the sharp rise in NORKA Care health insurance premiums for 2026–27 and decide on it within six weeks.
The order came on a writ petition, W.P.(C) No. 38075 of 2026, filed by the Pravasi Legal Cell (PLC) and two current scheme members, Musthafa Thondiyil and Abdul Hakeem KK. The court has asked the department’s Secretary to examine the group’s representation, hear the petitioners and any other affected parties, and pass a reasoned order in line with the law.
The six-week period starts only when the department receives a certified copy of the judgment. The respondents are the Kerala Government, the NORKA Principal Secretary, the CEO of NORKA Roots and National Insurance Company Limited, the insurer for the new policy period. TN Krishnakumar, president of PLC Dubai, said the direction gives affected Keralite expatriates a formal chance to be heard before the department.
NORKA Care: Age-Based Pricing Pushes NORKA Care Premiums Up by Over 160 Per Cent
The dispute centres on a change in how premiums are calculated. Until last year, all members paid a common group rate. For 2026–27, the scheme moved to age-linked pricing. Under the 2025–26 policy, a family with Rs5 lakh cover paid Rs13,411 a year. The same family cover now costs Rs35,664 for members aged 51–60 and Rs44,718 for those aged 61–70. That is a rise of roughly 166 per cent and 233 per cent respectively, even though the sum insured has not changed.
PLC argues this goes well beyond a routine annual revision. In its view, the new structure puts a heavy and disproportionate burden on middle-aged and older expatriates, who are the people most likely to depend on health cover. The group has also asked why premiums rose so steeply when the basic family cover stayed at Rs5 lakh.
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NORKA Care: Shorter Post-Hospitalisation Cover and Little Time to Renew
The petition also objects to a cut in post-hospitalisation protection, which has been reduced from 60 days after discharge to 30 days. PLC further says members were given too little notice. It points out that the earlier insurance arrangement called for at least 45 days’ notice before renewal.
According to the group, the new rates were announced officially only on October 28, 2026. The old policy ended on October 31 and the new one began on November 1, leaving members just days to absorb the changes, arrange the higher payment or look for other insurance.
NORKA Care: What the Pravasi Legal Cell Wants From NORKA
PLC has asked the department to make public the actuarial calculations, claims ratio, past claims experience, insurer quotations and the method used to set the age-based rates. It wants the new pricing system withdrawn and the earlier group-based premium restored for the transition period. It also wants existing members to keep uninterrupted coverage and continuity benefits, including protection for pre-existing medical conditions.
The issue has drawn wider attention across the Gulf and in Kerala. Several expatriate associations in countries including the UAE, Qatar and Oman, along with political leaders and MPs, have called for the hike to be reviewed or rolled back. Separate suggestions sent to the Chief Minister include keeping the existing premium for Rs5 lakh cover, subsidising any extra cost, removing GST, introducing a waiting period for pre-existing illnesses in place of higher premiums, and offering no-claim benefits.
The Chief Minister has reportedly said these alternatives can be considered. This is not the first time PLC has gone to the High Court over the scheme: in 2025 it petitioned over the exclusion of returnee Non-Resident Keralites, and the court asked NORKA Roots to consider including them.
Krishnakumar said the central concern is affordability. A health insurance scheme created for the welfare of Pravasis, he said, should not become too expensive for middle-aged and senior expatriates, who need continuous medical protection the most. All eyes now turn to the NORKA Department, whose decision within the six-week window will show whether the revised premium structure stands, is modified or is withdrawn.
