Buying a health insurance plan is indispensable to keep your sudden expenses in check. Be it an accident or hospitalisation, unanticipated medical bills can throw your financial planning out of gear. Add a child birth, the scenario remains similar but the distinction lies in the fact that it is neither an ‘accident’ nor an ‘illness.’
The insurers, therefore, treat this life situation quite differently and even impose a waiting period of two years or so before one can start to avail the maternity benefit. And understandably so!
What is a maternity insurance plan?
It is a health insurance plan that covers all the expenses related to child birth up to a certain period. This means maternity insurance not only covers the delivery expenses, but also the cost incurred in prenatal and postnatal care. However, it varies from insurer to insurer.
One may opt for a standalone policy or buy it by paying extra premium as an add-on maternity cover.
So, if you are geared to start a family and are seeking maternity benefits under your health insurance plan, be mindful of the following provisions of health insurance.
Four key provisions related to maternity insurance coverage to remember
1. Waiting period: Usually, conventional health insurance plans impose a two-year waiting period whereas a number of newly introduced plans offer reduced waiting periods of only 9 months.
ALSO READ: Are maternity-related expenses covered under health insurance?
“While traditional plans typically mandated a two-year waiting period or more, the newly introduced modern plans feature a significantly reduced waiting period of just nine months for first-time health insurance buyers,” says Siddharth Singhal, Business Head, Health Insurance at Policybazaar.com.
2 Integrating with spouse’s policy: When one of the spouses has already subscribed to a policy, the nine-month waiting period for the other spouse is waived off.
“Once married, they can seamlessly include their spouse in the health plan, and the waiting period fulfilled by the individual will be exempted for their spouse. Consequently, the spouse won’t be required to undergo the 9-month waiting period to avail maternity benefits in this situation,” adds Singhal.
3. Comprehensive coverage: Not many of the policy holders may be aware, but some of these plans also cover expenses related to IVF (In vitro fertilisation) treatment, vaccination costs and even charges related to child adoption.
“These plans encompass various procedures such as IVF treatment. Furthermore, the coverage extends to charges relating to even adopting a child. The policy also includes ambulance fees, NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) expenses, and vaccination costs for newborns within 30 to 90-day period post-delivery, alongside other associated expenses,” he adds.
4. Pre-existing pregnancy: It is noteworthy to mention that most insurance companies do not offer maternity insurance if the policy holder is already pregnant.
This is because they consider pregnancy as a pre-existing condition and, therefore, keeps it beyond the policy cover.
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Published: 29 Jan 2024, 10:57 AM IST