A key question couples planning to have a baby should ask is, "What will we pay if we use Maternity Health Insurance plan 'XYZ'?" In a new report from SPF Insurance, titled 'Analysis of Best California Maternity Health Insurance Plans', couples can find a break down of the costs associated with prenatal care and delivery for the best maternity health insurance plans. A key finding from the article shows the tradeoff between the maternity insurance premiums and the out of pocket costs and how both affect the total out of pocket costs the couple will see.
In the analysis, five of the best pregnancy health insurance plans were summarized. The included plans were the Kaiser 0/1500 HSA plan, the Kaiser 50 Copayment plan, the Anthem Blue Cross Select HMO plan, the Health Net HMO 40 plan, and the Blue Shield Spectrum 5000 plan. The Out Of Pocket Cost (OOP) is the total of the prenatal office visit copays, the lab expenses, the cost of the Amniocentesis and Ultrasound tests, along with the hospital delivery costs. Adding the total 12 month premiums for each plan to the OOP gives us the Total Out Of Pocket Cost (TOOP). This is the amount you would pay during the pregnancy and delivery.
Here is a quick summary of the analysis cost data from the article:
These five plans are the best pregnancy health insurance options available in California right now, and when you look at the data a couple of items stick out. The Blue Cross Select HMO plan has the lowest out of pocket costs, and the Blue Shield Spectrum plan has the lowest premium cost, however neither plan has the lowest total out of pocket cost. It's clear that lower pregnancy insurance premiums or OOP costs are not always better. Ultimately keeping the total out of pocket cost lower is the goal, so both the premiums and the out of pocket costs have to be considered in each plan.
Some people might look at the TOOP costs above and decide that maternity insurance doesn't provide much of a benefit. Because of this, they'll pick a plan that has lower premiums so they can keep their costs down before the pregnancy begins. However, they become disappointed after the pregnancy happens when their out of pocket costs are higher because their pregnancy health insurancehas a high deductible. Keeping emotions out the decision is important, after all, the actual total cost of the prenatal care and delivery costs is closer to $20,000, and with pregnancy insurance, your out of pocket costs are $5,000 to $9,000, so you're paying less than 45% of the actual costs. Plus, if there are difficulties during the pregnancy or delivery, the insurance company will pay for most of those extra costs.
For most people, quality of care is the most important part of the decision regarding which maternity health insurance plan to choose. Cost is still an issue, but as you can see, the way to decide which plan is the best choice is to "run the numbers" and see what the total out of pocket cost will be. Then you'll know what costs to plan for during your maternity and delivery period.
In the analysis, five of the best pregnancy health insurance plans were summarized. The included plans were the Kaiser 0/1500 HSA plan, the Kaiser 50 Copayment plan, the Anthem Blue Cross Select HMO plan, the Health Net HMO 40 plan, and the Blue Shield Spectrum 5000 plan. The Out Of Pocket Cost (OOP) is the total of the prenatal office visit copays, the lab expenses, the cost of the Amniocentesis and Ultrasound tests, along with the hospital delivery costs. Adding the total 12 month premiums for each plan to the OOP gives us the Total Out Of Pocket Cost (TOOP). This is the amount you would pay during the pregnancy and delivery.
Here is a quick summary of the analysis cost data from the article:
These five plans are the best pregnancy health insurance options available in California right now, and when you look at the data a couple of items stick out. The Blue Cross Select HMO plan has the lowest out of pocket costs, and the Blue Shield Spectrum plan has the lowest premium cost, however neither plan has the lowest total out of pocket cost. It's clear that lower pregnancy insurance premiums or OOP costs are not always better. Ultimately keeping the total out of pocket cost lower is the goal, so both the premiums and the out of pocket costs have to be considered in each plan.
Some people might look at the TOOP costs above and decide that maternity insurance doesn't provide much of a benefit. Because of this, they'll pick a plan that has lower premiums so they can keep their costs down before the pregnancy begins. However, they become disappointed after the pregnancy happens when their out of pocket costs are higher because their pregnancy health insurancehas a high deductible. Keeping emotions out the decision is important, after all, the actual total cost of the prenatal care and delivery costs is closer to $20,000, and with pregnancy insurance, your out of pocket costs are $5,000 to $9,000, so you're paying less than 45% of the actual costs. Plus, if there are difficulties during the pregnancy or delivery, the insurance company will pay for most of those extra costs.
For most people, quality of care is the most important part of the decision regarding which maternity health insurance plan to choose. Cost is still an issue, but as you can see, the way to decide which plan is the best choice is to "run the numbers" and see what the total out of pocket cost will be. Then you'll know what costs to plan for during your maternity and delivery period.
About the Author:
Tim Thompson writes Insurance Articles for SPF Insurance Services For more information and fast quotes on Maternity Health Insurance, visit SPFInsurance.com. To get latest updates, check out our blog at Maternity Insurance. Check here for free reprint license: Best Maternity Health Insurance Plans Analyzed: What Your Out Of Pocket Costs Will Look Like.