Maternity insurance policy is a special policy that covers all maternity-related costs starting for childbirth to post-delivery expenses. Maternity Insurance Plan is available as a standalone policy as well as an add-on to an existing insurance plan.
Pregnancy is one of the important periods of women’s life. Sometimes pregnancy becomes a costly affair due to medical complications. If you are not prepared you may end up spending a lot of money. So, it is important to have a Maternity Insurance plan or add on coverage that lower the burden on your pocket.
Multiple companies are offering Maternity Insurance plans in India. Most of them offer similar benefits. If you are confused about selecting maternity insurance cover, here is a post on Top 5 Maternity Insurance Plans.
What is Maternity Insurance Plans?
A maternity insurance plan is a plan that covers medical expenses incurred during pregnancy. It is generally provided as add-on or additional rider to a primary health insurance policy. This plan covers both normal delivery and cesarean delivery expenses. Some insurance policy covers this benefit by default in to the main plan. On the other hand, a few insurance companies offer it as an optional add-on or rider.
The inclusion and exclusion of the expenses are different some policy covers all expenses including pre and post-hospitalization up to 30 days.
It is advisable to go through all terms and conditions as well as exclusion detail before opting for Maternity Insurance Plan.
Also Read – Top 5 Best Health Insurance in India
Top 5 Maternity Insurance Plans
#1 Maternity Insurance Plan JOY – Religare
JOY by Religare is a pure maternity insurance plan.JOY covers pregnant ladies as well as a newborn baby for health-related expenses. In addition to health-related expenses, it also covers the medical bills of a newborn baby up to 90 days from the date of birth. Key features of JOY Religare plan are given below.
- A short 9 months waiting time for claiming maternity insurance.
- Long term policy for 3 years.
- No claim bonus with a 100% increase in sum insured.
- Two plan options – Joy Today and Joy tomorrow.
- Sum assured from 3 Lakh to 5 Lakh.
- Post Medical hospitalization coverage up to 60 days.
- Pre-medical checkup before taking policy
#2 Star Wedding Gift Health Insurance
Star Wedding Gift Health Insurance is a unique plan that provides security and health protection during pregnancy. This plan comes with newborn baby cover including congenital disorder cover. The plan also covers normal and cesarean delivery cover up to the limts. Features and associated benefits of this plan are given below.
- Two options for the coverage from 3 Lakh to 5 Lakh.
- Delivery expense coverage up to Rs.25000.
- Newborn baby cover from Rs.50000 to 1 Lakh.
- Post-delivery expenses coverage up to hospitalization expense coverage.
- The policy is offered up to 2 years.
- Pre and Post hospitalization coverage benefits.
- Cashless hospitalization wherever possible.
#3 Easy Health Family Floater by HDFC Argo
Easy Health is a family floater plan by HDFC Argo (earlier known as Apollo Munich). It is a comprehensive plan that covers multiple types of health-related issues. This plan comes with a critical illness rider. This plan also covers maternity-related expenses. The features and benefits of this plan are given below.
- This plan provides complete coverage with 100% life long renewal.
- Easy Health Family Floater covers maternity benefits including regular checkups from qualified doctors.
- Any hospitalization benefit coverage for newborn baby up to 90 days after birth.
- The plan comes with a cumlative bonus of 10% for every claim-free year.
- You can take critical illness rider under this plan.
- It also covers AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy) related expenses.
#4 Heart Beat Family Floater by Max Bupa
Heart Beat Family Floater plan by Max Bupa provides complete coverage up 1Cr. This plan comes with Gold and Platinum variants. The plan also covers international hospitalization coverage and newborn maternity benefits. The features of this plan are given below.
- The plan covers maternity benefits up to two deliveries.
- The coverage offers is up to 2 consecutive years.
- The newborn baby will be covered as an insured person from birth without additional premium, till the policy year-end.
- The plan also provides vaccination expenses of the newborn baby for the first year if you add the baby in the policy for the next policy year.
- The plan offers a facility of optional critical riders such as critical illness cover, e-consultation, premium waiver, etc.
- No limit on hospital room rent up to plan coverage amount.
#5 Royal Sundaram Total Health Plus
Royal Sundaram also offers a policy that covers maternity expenses. The plan name is Total health plus. The coverage limit in case of maternity expenses is slightly lower. Features of Total health plus are given below.
- Maternity Benefit Cover up to 10% of the Sum Insured subject to a maximum of Rs. 30000 & Rs.50000 under different plan option.
- The plan is applicable to the first two deliveries.
- The plan covers pre & post hospitalization expenses up to 60 days.
- OPD treatment cost is also covered under this plan up to a specific limit.
- Some pre-existing diseases are not covered under this plan.
- A waiting period for a few diseases is from 12 months to 36 months.
Few Important Points to consider while buying a maternity insurance policy
- Make sure to compare the premium amount before buying a policy.
- Please note that the premium payable on a maternity insurance policy is higher than a regular health plan as a claim under this policy is absolute.
- Once you grow older premiums of these types of insurance increase further thus it is advisable to buy this policy at an early age.
- Remember to look at the waiting period before buying the policy.
- Instead of buying separate maternity insurance you should go for a full health insurance family floater plan.
- Go for riders in case it is required.
- Go through the major exclusions in the policy before buying.
- Please check for the co-pay terms and conditions before buying a health insurance plan.
