Prenatal or Maternity Insurance | Maternity Insurance Guide in Singapore

Health Insurance | Insurance

Having your first child is like taking a bungee jump for new parents. You’re excited to start this new chapter in your life, but you’re also terrified that something will go wrong before they are born! You’ve probably heard of prenatal and maternity insurance plans, but are they really effective at providing comprehensive coverage for you and your child? In this blog, we tell you about prenatal or maternity insurance in Singapore. 

What exactly is maternity or prenatal insurance?

A prenatal insurance plan is a type of term insurance that provides you with financial protection if you experience complications during your pregnancy. You’re also covered if your child has a congenital disorder.

Prenatal or Maternity Insurance in Singapore

What is covered by maternity insurance?

Complications of pregnancy

If a pregnancy complication occurs, it will pay a lump sum of money and/or hospital benefits. Various pregnancy complications may be covered depending on the insurer. 

• Stillbirth
• Amniotic Fluid Embolism
• Pre-Eclampsia/ Eclampsia
• Fatty Liver of Pregnancy
• Abruptio Placentae
• Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation
• Placenta increta/percreta
• Postpartum Haemorrhage requiring Hysterectomy

What does maternity insurance not cover?

Recurring pregnancy expenses
If you become pregnant, your normal pregnancy expenses will not be reimbursed. This will only happen if you purchased an international health insurance plan before becoming pregnant. However, these usually come with much higher prices.

When should I buy a prenatal insurance policy?

To purchase a prenatal insurance policy, you must be:

Between the legal and potentially childbearing ages (18-45 years old)
For obvious reasons, an expectant mother of at least 16 weeks is required (depending on the insurer)

Prenatal or Maternity Insurance in Singapore

Is it worthwhile to purchase prenatal insurance?

Risk

Most people do not consider prenatal insurance to be necessary because pregnancy lasts only 9 months, most deliveries are uneventful, and they do not believe in converting their plans to an investment-linked life policy after they expire.

Cost

Most prenatal plans have a one-time premium of $300-700, depending on the insurer and coverage plan you choose.

Payout

If there is a pregnancy complication/congenital illness or death, you will receive a one-time payout of around $5,000 (for basic plans) and/or medical reimbursement for your baby’s hospital bills.

There will be no cash-outs or returns if your pregnancy goes smoothly. And you have the option of:

•  Cancel the plan (and consider your one-time premium as good money spent on a protection product). Or,
•  Keep the plan going by converting it to an investment linked policy/whole life insurance policy for your child. Because you purchased the plan before your child was born, he or she will benefit from the most affordable premium rates and coverage from the start.

If you don’t have $300-$700 to spare and are already struggling to make ends meet, nothing is ever worth it unless you absolutely need it. In that case, you do not. However, if you have a spare budget after deducting all other expenses, purchasing this type of protection can be critical if something goes wrong. We’ll return to the insurance rule: you never know what will happen in the future.

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