Pregnancy – Maternity Insurance Claims for Private Hospital?
【Pregnancy】– Maternity Insurance Claims for Private Hospital?
Pregnancy – Maternity Insurance Covers Childbirths in Private Hospitals
Pregnancy is an important stage in building a family. A wide range of elements, from the timing of pregnancy, to physical condition and financial situation, have to be taken into consideration. The whole pregnancy process involves a lot of expenses, and first of all, it has to be decided whether to give birth in a public hospital or a private hospital.
Parents hope to provide the best quality of life and care for their children. From pregnancy to delivery, mothers need the best care and protection. As the first step in welcoming a child, childbirth is not easy at all but requires strenuous efforts. A comfortable environment in a private hospital and assistance of professional nursing staff can help to reduce the pressure of mothers, but the incurring high medical expenses may hold people back. In fact, maternity insurance can greatly reduce the financial burden.
Maternity Benefit Detail
For childbirth, should we choose a public hospital or a private hospital?
Nowadays, the quality of supporting facilities and delivery rooms in public hospitals has already been improved. For instance, some of the delivery rooms have been renovated and electric beds are equipped. However, in public hospitals, mothers are generally encouraged to exclusively breastfeed their infants and put their babies at the bedside so that the little ones can familiarize themselves with the mother's body odor as soon as possible. Meanwhile, the mothers also need to start taking care of their babies immediately. It will be relatively difficult for the mothers who feel tired, unwell or painful after childbirth. In addition, nurses in public hospitals will not feed the infants with formula milk unless specifically requested, leaving newborn babies at risk of underfeeding.
Private hospitals can provide more flexible services, as well as sufficient manpower and resources to meet and care for the needs of pregnant women. Pregnant women can choose their ideal delivery process and services, such as staying in a comfortable private suite, having painless delivery or collecting umbilical cord blood, etc. Moreover, they can choose to appoint a specific doctor to deliver the baby, or even a caesarean section at a designated time. While the newborn baby will be taken to the nursery room immediately after delivery and will be looked after by nurses on duty. The mothers can hence get enough rest, and go to the nursery room to visit or feed their babies at the designated time.
Pregnancy Price List – For prenatal or postnatal care, how much does it cost?
From pregnancy to childbirth, the main expenses are divided into antenatal checkups and procedures of childbirth.
Pregnancy Price List - Prenatal or Postnatal Checkups and Relevant Fees
Antenatal checkups mainly include general antenatal checkups, prenatal screening tests for Down syndrome and fetal morphology scans. According to the Department of Health , a total of about 10 prenatal checkups are recommended. Checkups conducted in public hospitals or maternal and child health centers are free of charge, while each of the checkup done in private hospitals or clinics charges about $800-$1,000. Although the government provides prenatal screening tests for Down syndrome for free, each Hong Kong resident can only do the screening once. And for private hospitals or clinics, each test charges about $2,000-$3,000. Fetal morphology scans will generally not be offered by the government as required by pregnant women unless in case of special conditions of pregnant women or fetuses, while private hospitals or clinics charge about $800-$3,000.
After giving birth, the mother's physical condition will gradually recover. Known as "confinement", the recovery process usually takes about 6 weeks. During the confinement period, the mothers need to pay attention to their diet and take good care of themselves, as well as conducting a checkup after 6 weeks to ensure that their body has fully recovered.
Timetable and Price List of Antenatal Checkup
Pregnancy |
Prenatal Checkup |
Private Hospital or Clinic Charge |
Screening Test for Down Syndrome |
Fetal Morphology Scan |
NIFTY(Non-Invasive Fetal Trisomy Test) |
10-14th Week |
Once |
$800-$1,000/time |
$2,000-$3,000/time |
$800-$3,000/time |
$4,000-$6,800/time |
Before 28th Week |
Once every 4-6 weeks |
||||
28-36th Week |
Once every 2-4 weeks |
||||
After 36th Week |
Once every 1-2 weeks |
||||
After 6th Week of Postnatal |
Once |
N/A |
The above information is for reference only.
Pregnancy Price List - Delivery Services of Private Hospitals Charge Up to $80,000
From hospitalization to delivery, public hospitals generally charge about $500; while the charges of private hospitals range from about $20,000 to $80,000. The fees for caesarean section or emergency delivery will be more expensive than vaginal delivery, and private hospitals can provide a better environment and services, for example, a single room or a double room. Moreover, you can choose additional services such as painless childbirth.
Price Comparison of Childbirth Services in Different Private Hospitals
Item |
||||
Normal Delivery |
||||
Private Room |
$38,600 |
$39,300 |
$38,800 |
$38,000 |
Semi-private Room |
$29,000 |
$30,000 |
$27,800 |
$25,500 |
Standard Room |
$22,300 |
$21,900 |
$20,800 |
$22,500 |
Caesarean Section
|
||||
Private Room |
$45,800 |
$55,900 |
$46,800 |
$44,800 |
Semi-private Room |
$34,450 |
$39,600 |
$33,800 |
$30,500 |
Standard Room |
$26,480 |
$32,200 |
$25,300 |
$26,000 |
Emergency Caesarean Section |
||||
Private Room |
$57,800 |
$68,800 |
N/A |
$60,500 |
Semi-private Room |
$43,550 |
$48,300 |
N/A |
$41,000 |
Standard Room |
$33,480 |
$37,700 |
N/A |
$35,000 |
Other Items |
||||
Epidural Anesthesia |
$7,000-$12,000 |
$7,300 |
$6,300 |
$6,300-$11,025 |
Forceps or Vacuum Delivery |
N/A |
Included |
N/A |
$730-$1,278 |
Induction of labour |
N/A |
$6,800 |
N/A |
N/A |
Collection of Cord Blood for Stem Cell Storage |
$700-$1,200 |
$1,320 |
N/A |
$1,150-$2,013 |
The above information is for reference only.
Maternity Benefit DetailShould I buy insurance before giving birth? Enjoy up to 68% off childbirth service at private hospital
Referring to the above price list, the medical expenses of pregnant women have brought financial burdens to many families. However, high-quality medical experience is not really out of reach. The Bupa Hero VHIS Plan offers Optional Maternity Benefits with comprehensive coverage, including any medical expenses incurred due to pregnancy (i.e. hospital stay, consultation with registered doctors and prescription of western medicine, diagnostic checks, antenatal and postnatal checkups), and nursery care of the newborn baby during hospitalization.
Optional Maternity Benefits
(Per Pregnancy) |
||||
Normal Delivery |
$28,000 |
$30,000 |
$50,000 |
$55,000 |
Caesarean Section |
$42,000 |
$46,000 |
$75,000 |
$80,000 |
Miscarriage |
$14,000 |
$18,000 |
$25,000 |
$30,000 |
If you choose to stay in a private room in a private hospital, perform a painless caesarean section, and conduct 10 general antenatal checkups in the hospital or other private clinics, the total expenditure will be:
$73,800 |
= |
$45,800 |
+ |
$12,000 |
+ |
$16,000 |
Total Expenses |
= |
Caesarean Section (Single Room) |
+ |
Painless Delivery |
+ |
10General Antenatal Checkups & Fetal Morphology Scan |
An applicant can get a maternity benefit of $80,000 once she applies for the Bupa Hero VHIS Plan (Deluxe Pro Plan), which means that the policyholder can enjoy the above services without paying extra fees. Calculated in terms of premiums, it is equivalent to enjoying 68% off the childbirth service at a private hospital.*
*Take a 25-year-old policyholder as an example: if she applies for the Bupa Hero VHIS Plan (Deluxe Pro Plan), chooses to pay an annual deductible of $80,000 and add optional maternity benefit, and enjoys the current 10% discount for single enrolment, the premium will be $25,321.1. If the policyholder gives birth by caesarean section, she can claim up to $80,000, saving more than 68% of money. As the deductible is only applicable to the basic coverage and the maternity benefit is an optional item, the policyholder does not have to pay the deductible in advance but make a claim directly.
Maternity Benefit Detail
What should I pay attention to when considering buying maternity insurance?
How long is the waiting period for the maternity benefit? Is there an age limit on the application of insurance? When is the effective date of the policy? Is preterm birth covered during the waiting period? Can I still purchase the insurance after the confirmation of pregnancy? How to make a claim for maternity insurance? If the purchased policy includes deductible, do I need to pay the deductible first when claiming the maternity benefits? |
The above summary of our insurance products is for reference only. It is not, and does not form part of, a contract of insurance and is designed to provide an overview of the key features of these products.
Talk to us
Contact our health management consultant to get details and advice.
2517 5860
Mon-Fri 9am-9pm (except public holidays)