What implications do the new health insurance guidelines by  have for policyholders?

Plenty it seems.

Insurers can no longer deny coverage for illness or injury related with hazardous activities, impairment of cognitive faculties owing to use of medicines prescribed by a doctor, mental illness, puberty and menopause related diseases, congenital or genetic diseases or illness due to  failure to follow prescribed treatment.

Also, an insurer cannot reject a claim after a health insurance policy has been in force for eight years except for proven fraud and permanent exclusions.

Additionally, pre and post hospitalization expenses cannot be excluded under domiciliary treatment thus bringing it at par with inpatient treatment.

While an insurer can still cancel a policy on grounds of non-disclosure, the new guidelines provide more options to the insurer to deal with such a situation. If the non-disclosed condition belongs to the permanent exclusion category,the insurer can exclude the disease and continue with the policy, with the consent of the policyholder. Or if the non-excluded disease is from a non-permanent exclusion,then the insurer can impose an additional waiting period. Earlier, the only option available to the insurer in case of non-disclosure was cancellation of the policy.

Thus the IRDAI continues with its policy of holding the policyholders' interests primary as it seeks to develop the insurance market in the country. But insurers may have to increase their premiums to cover these exclusions.