Health Insurance for Your New-Born: Is It a Must?

Posted on: Dec 19, 2022 | | Written by:

Health Insurance for Your New-Born: Is It a Must?

Published on December 19, 2022. EST READ TIME: 4 minutes

Parenthood brings a great deal of happiness and responsibility. Especially for new parents in nuclear families, ensuring the newborn is safe and healthy is a mammoth task. While taking care of the infant may lead to many sleepless nights, there is no reason to lose sleep over hospitalisation charges if the baby falls sick. When a couple is expecting a baby, the expenses can shoot through the roof and put a dent in the savings. At such a time, another hospitalisation can put the parents in the financial soup along with the emotional turmoil they may already be feeling. On the occasion of Infant Protection Day, let’s find out why newborn baby health insurance is important, its benefits and the types of policies available in our country.

Why Is New-born Baby Health Insurance Important?

The immune system of newborn babies is not strong enough to fight diseases, so they are prone to falling sick. Newborns also need extra care and attention, particularly in the first few months, which includes regular check-ups, vaccinations, medical treatments, etc. With rising medical expenses, newborn health insurance is a must to safeguard your expenses due to hospitalisation, medical emergencies, and vaccinations. You can get timely medical attention by securing your newborn’s health without worrying about finances.

How Does New-born Baby Health Insurance Work?

A newborn baby can be covered through maternity health insurance or a family floater insurance plan. Some maternity insurance plans cover the baby from Day 1; all the necessary medical treatments and vaccinations are also covered. If you want to include your child in the existing family floater, the baby should be born within the policy tenure and completed 90 days. Some insurance companies do not charge anything for adding the youngest and newest member to the existing health insurance for a family, while some insurance providers may charge additional costs. You can also consider buying an individual or separate plan for your child.

Types Of Health Insurance Policies for New-born Babies in India

There are no specific individual health insurance plans for newborn babies in India. You can either add them to the family floater health insurance plan after the baby completes 90 days after birth or cover them under a maternity health insurance plan or buy an individual health insurance plan.

Benefits of Health Insurance Cover for New-borns

•Comprehensive Coverage:

A newborn gets comprehensive coverage for pre- and post-hospitalisation, ambulance and hospitalisation charges, and daycare treatments. But your baby can avail of health insurance only after completing 90 days. However, some insurance companies provide coverage earlier too; you can check with the insurer providers.

•Cashless Facility:

With health insurance, you can avail of cashless hospitalisation at any of the network hospitals of the insurance provider.

•Tax Benefits:

Health insurance not only safeguards your baby but also helps you avail of tax deductions under section 80D of the Income Tax Act. You can claim for the premium paid towards health insurance

•No Claim Bonus (NCB):

The No Claim Bonus is the discount that your insurance provider gives you on the premium (at the time of renewal) for not making any claims for your newborn during a policy year. With NCB, you can save on the premium.

•Annual Check-ups:

You can avail of annual health check-ups to monitor your baby’s health.

•Peace of Mind:

There’s no denying the fact that health insurance gives you peace of mind when it comes to hospital expenses. With no health insurance, you can get financially as well as emotionally drained from paying the hefty medical bills.

Factors to Consider Before Buying Insurance Policies for Infants

Before buying health insurance for infants, there are a few factors one must keep in mind:

• Choose the sum insured according to the health needs of the infant because they are very different from those of an adult. A bigger sum insured will only increase the premium.

• Usually, the newborn is covered after 90 days of birth. To protect your baby against any medical risks, look for a plan that covers your child at the earliest.

• While some insurers extend the existing family floater coverage to your newborn with no extra cost, many others charge an additional cost for the same coverage.

• Choose an insurance provider that offers you the flexibility to customise your health plan in the future to fulfil the child’s needs as and when they arise.

• Check if the health insurance policy for infants has a co-payment clause. In co-payment, you have to pay a certain amount from your pocket at the time of claim settlement.

• Lastly, read the terms and conditions of the policy thoroughly before buying it.

Conclusion

A newborn brings immense joy to the family. At the same time, parents have to take extra care of the baby’s health needs. Health insurance for infants is crucial to financially safeguard yourself from unforeseen medical expenses. You can choose to include the baby in the existing family floater insurance plan or buy a separate policy but ensure the plan provides comprehensive coverage.

Disclaimer: The above information is for illustrative purpose only. For more details, please refer to policy wordings and prospectus before concluding the sales.

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