Gifting loved ones a joyful maternity

Not really. To begin with, a majority of health insurance policies do not cover maternity expenses at all, despite the fact that the insured is bound to be hospitalized for a period of at least 24 hours. And those retail policies that do offer maternity benefits are far from practical and comprehensive. Although they cover delivery expenses, both normal and Caesarean, they come with some limiting conditions. For example, you cannot avail of maternity benefits as soon as you purchase the policy; there is a waiting period that could range between 2 to 4 years, depending upon the insurer and plan. Further, these products have sub-limits that usually range from an inadequate Rs 15,000 to a maximum of Rs 50,000.  There are group health insurance plans that allow you to claim maternity benefits. But here again, the cover sub-limits are likely to be inadequate and do you really want to stay tied to your job just so that you can enjoy maternity benefits when the time is right?

Your maternity benefit wish-list

Now, let’s suppose you are planning a baby and could jot down all the features that you would like to see in an insurance plan, what would they be?

-- Maternity plus health insurance – Health insurance with some maternity benefits doesn’t seem to be an ideal arrangement. So, let’s wish for a product that focuses more on meeting your maternity-related financial needs, although it is basically a health insurance policy too. Effectively, it should cover a long list of ailments and pre-existing diseases but offer great maternity and new born benefits too.

-- Shorter waiting period – Let’s face it, you may not want to postpone bringing your little bundle of joy into this world just because your insurance policy tells you to wait. Wouldn’t it be great to have a policy with a waiting period of just 9 months? It would mean that from the moment you decide you would like to augment your family, you could rest assured that you will be able to claim maternity benefits when it happens.

-- Comprehensive cover – Naturally, you would like the product to take care of not just the delivery expenses but the pre-natal and post-natal expenses incurred with respect to the hospitalisation as well.

It should include room charges, nursing expenses and the doctor’s fee. Beyond that, if your delivery gets complicated, your policy should cover expenses incurred on an ambulance services in an emergency situation, ICU charges, the surgeon’s fee, anaesthesia, blood, oxygen, operation theatre charges,etc.

-- Cover for baby – You would like to know that until your infant becomes adequately adjusted to the world around, say approximately three months after birth, he or she will still be covered by your insurance policy. In fact, even beyond the initial 3 months, you may like to have the option to continue having your baby covered under your existing policy.

-- A tax break – Stretch your imagination a little further. How about a maternity insurance policy that helps you to save on your taxes?

-- Other conveniences and benefits you may expect– While the policy is in effect, it would be nice to gain mileage from it even for the years during which there is no claim. As a reward for staying in good health, the policy should have a ‘no claim’ bonus built in.  Last, but not the least, this dream-policy should also have a direct and simple claim filing procedure, with both the cashless and reimbursement options available.

Dreams do come true

If you are looking incredulously at the wish list you have just read, it’s time to hear some great news. There are health insurance companies that offer maternity and new born cover with all these facilities and more. All you have to do is explore the market and you’ll find one. Keeping a track of the types of maternity policies that are available and the facilities they offer could help you immensely in your financial planning exercise. After all, having a baby is a goal and a milestone and accordingly, it deserves a carefully crafted financial plan too.

Gift a financially hassle free maternity experience

Now here’s one last enduring idea, while we are on the subject of maternity and wishes. Irrespective of whether you have been a grandparent many times over or you are a novice to the whole experience of parenting, don’t you sometimes wish you could somehow get more involved in the maternity experience of the women who make your world more complete? Be it your spouse, sister, daughter, granddaughter, niece or daughter-in-law, don’t you wish you could gift her something that makes the whole experience of becoming a mother so much more memorable? Well, if you look around in the market and find a maternity policy that lives up to your wish-list and allows you to propose an individual policy for any of these lovely ladies, go ahead and gift it to her today!

The writer is Anuj Gulati, CEO & MD, Religare Health Insurance