Best Maternity Insurance Plans
Giving birth to a child is the most valuable experience for a woman where she sails through myriads of new experiences and emotions. While the happiness in carrying a baby can't subside with anything in the world, sometimes the financial aspect incurred during the pre & post-natal period can become a hindrance in this magical journey. The average cost to deliver a baby is around Rs. 45,000 to Rs. 75,000, and the cost of cesarean deliveries has risen to Rs. 2 lakhs in most metro cities in India. Therefore, maternity insurance is a great means to ensure that there are no roadblocks in the nine-month magical journey.
Maternity insurance is one of the underrated categories of insurance which people generally neglect, but if looked closely then this can really help the to-be-parents in managing a huge chunk of finances throughout the journey. Maternity insurance provides coverage for all the expenses associated with childbirth up to a certain period.
What is Maternity Health Insurance?
Maternity insurance is a type of health insurance that is designed to offer comprehensive coverage to a woman and helps her prepare in advance for the financial requirements of growing a baby. Such plans are designed to cover medical expenses incurred during pregnancy like delivery expenses, hospitalization, pre & post-natal care, medical tests, medicines and other newborn baby expenses.
Benefits of Maternity Insurance
Maternity insurance, generally, comes as a standalone policy and also comes as a benefit or add-on rider with general health insurance in individual and family floater plans. This insurance covers all maternity-related expenses such as delivery, both options, normal and cesarean, and other medical expenses including nursing, room charges, doctor consultation, anesthetist charges, and surgeon's fees. Moreover, the maternity benefit covers the treatment taken for complications in the pregnancy or medically necessary termination, in case required.
The maternity insurance is proven to be supportive post the birth of the baby. It pays for expenses arising out of hospitalization charges of the newborn baby due to any medical complications, vaccination charges, fertility issues of the mother usually up to 90 days from the date of delivery. This add-on benefit can be opted for both the first or second time of having a child by the policyholder.
Best Maternity Insurance Plans in India 2023
Choosing a suitable plan for maternity can require a lot of juggling of available plans in the insurance market. Some of the cruicial factors that should channelize your decision in choosing the right plan should include, inclusion of pre and post hospitalization expenses, pre and post natal expenses, delivery charges and inpatient hospitalization, vaccination cover, newborn coverage in your maternity plan. Here is a list of Best Maternity Insurance Plans available in India which can help you enjoy a financially stress-free pregnancy:
A comprehensive health insurance plan that offers comprehensive coverage against medical bills & comes with access to Chronic Management Program.
Unique Benefits
- Chronic illness cover
- Modern treatments covered
- Double coverage
A plan with 3 variants offering up to 1 Cr SI. It covers expenses incurred during hospitalization resulting from serious illness or accident.
Unique Features
- Avail Discounts
- Maternity cover available
- Organ Donor expenses covered
A maternity health insurance plan with child cover. This plan protects individuals and families during medical emergencies.
Unique Benefits
- 100% increase in SI as NCB
- Newborn Cover
- 541 day care treatments covered
An ideal option if you are looking for coverage for yourself, your spouse, and your children. The plan offers four smart health insurance solutions.
Unique Benefits
- Lifelong renewal available
- One-time premium payment
- Maternity cover available
Future Generali Health Total Policy
A comprehensive health insurance plan that provides coverage against medical expenses. Moreover, the plan also looks after your overall well-being.
Unique Features
- Coverage for Mental Illness
- E-opinion for illness or injury
- Maternity Expenses covered
A comprehensive health insurance policy that covers you and your family with SI of up to 50 lakhs. Provides additional benefits as well.
Unique Features
- Available in 4 different variants
- 100% Automatic Restoration of SI
- Riders for enhanced coverage
Kotak Health Care protects you and your family financially against medical emergencies. The plan comes in three variants- Excel, Platinum and Prime.
Unique Features
- Enhanced coverage
- Free Annual Health Check-ups
- Lifetime Renewability
A comprehensive medical policy that blends well with the lifestyle of your family while offering SI options from 5 Lakhs to 3 Crores.
Unique Features
- Maternity benefits available
- 10% increase in SI annually
- International coverage available
A comprehensive health insurance plan that offers a 15% increase in cumulative bonus for every claim-free year and comes with 8 optional coverage options.
Unique Features
- Bariatric Surgery cover
- 573 Day Care procedures covered
- Domestic Air Ambulance cover
This policy is designed to provide complete protection against all health care eventualities to you and your family.
Unique Features
- Health check-ups for claim-free years
- Hospital Cash Benefit
- 100% Automatic Restoration
Premium & Waiting Period
However, the real question arises when one should take maternity policy. Though a maternity plan can be bought at the time of pregnancy but the benefits can't be claimed as maternity plans come with a good time of waiting period ranging from 9 months to 48 months, depending upon the company. In fact, most insurers don't provide maternity insurance plans at the time of pregnancy as it is considered a pre-existing disease category.
The premium payable on a maternity insurance policy is relatively higher than a regular health plan. The certainty of a claim being filed under the policy is absolute, hence, the insurers levy a higher premium on these policies. Therefore, when one decides to buy such coverage, it is recommended to undertake a detailed cost-benefit analysis between different plans offered by various insurance providers. It is crucial to remember that as one grows older, the premium for maternity insurance increases. And top of everything, maternity insurance plans are worth buying considering the escalating cost of pregnancy-related expenses.
Health Insurance Companies
What is Covered under Maternity Health Insurance?
- Delivery Cost, which covers both normal and caesarean deliveries.
- Prenatal and postnatal, which covers prescription drugs, physician fees, checkups, and ultrasounds.
- Newborn Coverage protects the healthcare needs of a newborn child.
- Vaccinations for a newborn baby are also covered.
- ICU & Room Rent.
- Pays for specialised medical procedures that don't need a full day at the hospital.
- Covers the cost of an emergency ambulance.
How to Raise a Claim for Maternity Health Insurance
With a maternity health insurance policy you can avail of a cashless treatment at any of the network hospitals that fall into the list hospitals of your insurer. If you get admitted in a non-network hospital, you can avail the treatment and settle the cost from your pocket. Later, you can apply for a reimbursement claim from the insurance company. Maternity health insurance policies are generally pregnancy insurance policies and you might not be able to get admitted in the particular network hospital due the less available time at the time of delivery. Therefore, reimbursement claims can come in handy. You need to submit some documents while filing for a maternity insurance claim. The list is as follows:
- Duly filled claim form
- Hospital discharge documents
- Hospital bill
- Policy document
- Pharmacy bill
- Fitness certificate and all the other documents asked by your particular insurer.
How to Buy Maternity Health Insurance
Maternity insurance covers the medical costs that arise out of maternity issues and procedures such as delivery of a newborn, post delivery medication and procedures, sometimes the new born baby, pregnancy related products and regular gynecologist visits. Buying a perfect pregnancy insurance plan can be confusing as there are a number of options available to choose from. Nevertheless, the basic criteria to scrutinize the best policy for maternity health insurance remains the same. Go through the following points to know how you can ensure landing up with a remarkably potent maternity insurance policy.
i) Coverage
The policy that you choose should be inclusive of all the maternity related procedures. Maternity procedures require a good amount of expenses and if there are any complications involved then the hospital bills can blow off the roof. Therefore, it is advised to go for a maternity insurance policy that covers hospital expenses, doctor visits, tests, pregnancy related commodities, and your newborn for up to 90 days.
ii) Waiting Period
Choose a maternity policy that comes at par with your plans to have a baby. Maternity health insurance comes with longer waiting periods such as 2 to 4 years. Therefore, it is advised to buy a pregnancy insurance policy long before you plan a pregnancy.
iii) Sub-limits
Usually, maternity insurance comes with a sub-limit. A sub-limit means that only a pre-decided amount will be borne by the insurance company, any exceeding expenses will have to be paid by you. Usually, the sub-limits for normal deliveries lie between 15,000 to 25,000. For cesarean deliveries, the sub-limit lies between 25,000 to 50,000.
What is Not Covered under Maternity Health Insurance?
- In-vitro fertilization.
- Ectopic pregnancy.
- Treatment costs for premature termination of pregnancy.
- Costs related to tonics, vitamins, or related supplements.
- Late pregnancies above 45 years of age.