The importance of maternity insurance for expecting mums
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PUBLISHED ONJune 28, 2022 6:25 AMBYEvan Sim
Being a parent is difficult; being a mother is even more challenging.
There are many risks from pregnancy alone, which can last even post-natrum.
According to Gleneagles Hospital, based in Singapore, the most common pregnancy and delivery complications are gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, high blood pressure, preterm labour, miscarriage, and bleeding in pregnancy due to low placenta.
According to Singapore Medical Journal, the incidence rate of congenital heart disease was 9.7 per 1,000 live births. With the most common congenital illness being ventricular septal defect affecting 54.8 per cent of infants born with the congenital illness.
In this article, we will provide essential information about what maternity insurance from private insurers covers beyond MediShield Life and Integrated Shield Plans so that you will be more equipped when choosing them.
Coverage before getting maternity insurance
We tend to mention in articles related to Integrated Shield Plans (IP) that MediShield Life provides coverage for all Singaporean Citizens and PRs, regardless of their pre-existing conditions.
MediShield Life even offers coverage for 24 common pregnancy complications:
| MediShield Life coverage | ||
|---|---|---|
| Eclampsia and pre-eclampsia | Cervical incompetency | Accreta placenta |
| Placental abruption | Placenta praevia | Antepartum, intrapartum, and postpartum haemorrhage |
| Placental insufficiency and intrauterine growth restriction | Gestational diabetes mellitus | Acute fatty liver or pregnancy |
| Obstetric cholestasis | Twin to twin transfusion syndrome | Infection of amniotic sac and membranes |
| Amniotic fluid emobolism | Fourth degree perineal laceration | Uterine rupture |
| Postpartum inversion of uterus | Obstetric injury or damage to pelvic organs | Complications resulting in a caesarean hysterectomy |
| Retained placenta and membrane | Abscess of breast | Ectopic pregnancy, hydatidiform mole and subsequent complications |
| Medically necessary abortions | Still-birth | Maternal death |
You can also get IPs to gain both higher coverage and coverage for better treatment for hospitalisation in general.
However, do note that the greater coverage for better hospitalisation treatment is still limited as they only cover the same range of conditions as MediShield Life.
IPs and MediShield Life does not cover the child, including congenital illnesses. This means that the alternatives of paying for treatment for your newborn are either via MediSave or their child’s MediSave Grant for newborns.
Coverage with maternity insurance
Maternity Insurance provides more extensive complications/conditions, benefits, and monetary coverage for both you and your newborn.
They can be standalone term plans that cover you throughout your pregnancy, with a grace period post-delivery.
They can also be bundled in with a whole life plan/Investment-Linked Policy for either the insured mother, child, or both of the respective parties. Some plans even cover multiple newborn babies in a single pregnancy for cases like expecting twins, triplets, or quadruplets.
Another benefit of maternity insurance is that unlike MediShield Life or IP, which provides a cap on coverage for complications such as pre-eclampsia, maternity insurance in Singapore covers 100 per cent of expenses for hospitalisation due to pregnancy and newborn conditions.
Maternity/pregnancy plans also tend to cover conditions that do not overlap with MediShield Life and IPs, which are not uncommon.
Singlife with Aviva: MyMaternityPlan - Cover up to four babies in one pregnancy
| Benefits | Limits |
|---|---|
| Mother/Child death | 100 per cent of sum assured |
| Pregnancy complications | 100 per cent of sum assured |
| Congenital illness | 100 per cent of sum assured |
| Hospital care benefits | One per cent of sum assured per day |
| Stem cell treatment (transplant surgery only) | 50 per cent sum assured |
| Developmental delay | 10 per cent of sum assured |
Analyst's review
The SingLife with Aviva MyMaternityPlan is standalone term insurance covering death, pregnancy complications and congenital illnesses for neonates.
The plan features include a one-time payout for stem cell transplant surgery and childhood developmental delays and also covers up to four babies in a single pregnancy, regardless of the type of pregnancy (IVF, Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI), Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) and Intracervical Insemination (ICI).
Do note that since it is a supplementary plan, it means that either you or your spouse have to purchase one of Singlife with Aviva's other health, critical illness or life insurance plans to be able to purchase MyMaternityPlan.
Maternity insurance tends to generally cover pregnancy complications & MediShield Life: What the new coverage means for Singaporean women.
Combined, maternity plans by private insurers cover more conditions than their hospitalisation plans counterpart. Some plans also offer daily cash benefits for each day you are hospitalised due to pregnancy complications and a greater lump-sum payment from death or total/permanent disability caused by pregnancy complications.
Some plans cover c-section deliveries, which are generally between 50 per cent-90 per cent more expensive than natural births due to their complexity—ranging from below $4,000 in unsubsidised wards to an average of $12,782 at private hospitals.
AXA HappyMummy is the first maternity plan in Singapore that covers early delivery via c-section.
The other selling point about maternity insurance is that, unlike MediShield Life and IPs, maternity plans in Singapore tend to cover the child’s life from the following events such as congenital illnesses or death.
Some plans even provide daily cash benefits for hospitalisation and outpatient phototherapy (from severe neonatal jaundice) daily cash benefits for newborns.
Premiums and duration of coverage
The only cost you have to consider for maternity insurance is the premiums, ranging from roughly $300 to up to $1,600.
The price range usually depends on your age; the younger you are, the cheaper your premiums will be. The premium costs can also depend on how much coverage you want and the type of insurance you get.
Standalone term insurance for pregnancy is cheaper than whole life plans + maternity insurance package since you cover the pure risk of the infant’s life post-natal.
NTUC Income Maternity 360 - For affordable premiums
| Maternity 360 ($5K) | Maternity 360 ($10K) | |
|---|---|---|
| Premium (25-year-old) | $370.95 | $741.90 |
| Premium (30-year-old) | $387.70 | $775.35 |
| Premium (35-year-old) | $458.05 | $916.10 |
| Mother/Child death | 100 per cent of sum assured | |
| Pregnancy complications | 100 per cent of sum assured | |
| Congenital illness | 100 per cent of sum assured | |
| Hospital care benefits | One per cent of sum assured/day | |
| Outpatient phototherapy | One per cent of sum assured/day (10 days) | |
Analyst's review
The NTUC Income Maternity 360 has one of the market's most affordable maternity/pregnancy insurance plans.
Since it is a standalone plan, Income's maternity plan does not include a life insurance policy already attached but the option of purchasing a life insurance plan for your baby 60 days after birth.
Unlike typical maternity policies covering the mother only 30 days after the child is born, NTUC Income Maternity 360 extends the mother's coverage for the three policy years. Policy premiums can be as low as $370.95 for 25-year-old mothers covering $5,000 in sum assured.
Despite covering 24 pregnancy conditions at higher coverage, they provide additional daily hospital care benefit of one per cent of your sum assured to help you pay for treating illnesses including postnatal anaemia, puerperal pyrexia and uterine infection (due to retained placenta), among others.
The plan also covers outpatient phototherapy if your child develops severe neonatal jaundice.
Maternity insurance terms tend to last for the entirety of your pregnancy or from when you are covered by the insurer, lasting until generally 30 days after childbirth.
The coverage provided for the newborn could last longer, with standalone plans such as Great Eastern Flexi Maternity covering the infant for up to three policy years.
Packaged pregnancy plans like the AIA Mum2Baby (ILP + Maternity) & Mum2Baby Protect (whole life + maternity), or AXA HappyMummy scheme, allow you to transfer the whole life coverage to the newborn without underwriting for the first 60 days after their birth.
AXA HappyMummy - For most conditions covered
| Benefits | Mothers | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Early delivery by caesarean section | 15 per cent of sum assured | - |
| Pregnancy complications benefit | 100 per cent of sum assured | - |
| Congenital illnesses benefit | - | 100 per cent of sum assured |
| Hospital care benefit | Two per cent of sum assured for up to 30 days | Two per cent of sum assured for up to 30 days |
| Death benefit | 100 per cent of sum assured | 100 per cent of sum assured |
Analyst's review
AXA’s HappyMummy is a two-plan bundle consisting of a prenatal insurance plan (AXA EmpoweredMum) and either a whole life plan (AXA LifeTreasure II) or an investment-linked insurance plan (AXA Flexi Protector).
The policy period lasts for three years. What makes AXA’s HappyMummy stand out from the other plans is that it is the first maternity plan in Singapore to cover early delivery by caesarean section.
It also offers mothers the freedom of transferring the benefits of their AXA Flexi Protector or Life Treasure (II) plans to their newborns without underwriting for the first 60 days after their birth.
Additionally, AXA HappyMummy also offers a death benefit and a hospital benefit for the mother and the child, along with coverage for 15 pregnancy complications for the mother, 26 congenital illnesses for the child, and a list of 10 and 17 hospital care benefit events for the mother and child respectively.
However, note that this plan excludes coverage for death by suicide or pre-existing medical conditions.
When Should You Get a Maternity/Pregnancy Plan?
We recommend getting maternity insurance as soon as a pregnancy is detected due to the insurance plans covering conditions arising from an early stage of pregnancy. It is always better to cover yourself early so you can benefit from the insurance sooner.
You will be eligible to sign up for pregnancy insurance as early as the 13th week to as late as the 40th week of your pregnancy. In most cases, you’ll also need to be between 18 to 45 years old.
Note that this is a general trend for private insurers, so check with an agent about what your specific policy can cover.
Summary and Conclusion
Despite MediShield and IP plans to provide basic coverage for pregnant mothers, getting insured by a maternity plan in Singapore has some benefits.
Maternity coverage provides full comprehensive coverage for more conditions and death benefits for both mother and infant.
A maternity plan includes coverage for congenital illnesses and other benefits like hospitalisation daily cash benefits from delivery complications, and an opportunity to get life insurance coverage for your children without underwriting.
Last but not least, always check with your insurer or agent about what benefits you will receive from the maternity plan, as each plan offers different benefits.
This article was first published in ValueChampion.
