Maternity not Generally Covered
Learning of a pregnancy should be a joyful time of life where the meaning of life is really made clear. We are here to nurture new life and bring new people into the world as part of our greater purpose. Well this is all quite lofty but one does indeed start thinking “out there” thoughts at a time like this. So you would want to have peace of mind and know that your health is going to be looked after. Sadly this is not as easy as it sounds and there are several health policies which just don’t cover the costs of this time in your life when your health is perhaps the most important.
In California alone, there are 805,000 people with medical insurance policies that specifically do not cover maternity, a number which as risen hugely from 192,000 in 2004. As a result of these astounding statistics, a bill is to be launched before the state legislature which would require maternity coverage to be included in health policies by all insurance companies. According to those promoting the bill, insurance companies are forcing people to take these policies by making it seem too expensive to include maternity coverage.
Those in opposition to the bill are of the opinion that this would be an unnecessary expense. Consumers don’t want to pay for something they are not going to use and insurance companies state that they don’t see the need for a move of this nature. Both believe that if the bill were to succeed it would push premiums up. Now of course the question has to be raised, is this in fact true or just something that the insurance companies would like us to believe. One insurance official really wants to push home the point and indicated that premiums could go up by as much as 107 per cent in some cases. Promoters of the bill say this is nonsense and reckon that a mere 4% increase in monthly premiums per individual would cover the additional expense.
This issue only focuses on individual insurance coverage as other types of policies include maternity coverage. So if one does not have insurance through their employer, they are the people impacted by this situation. Some people have been shocked at the discovery that their policies don’t included maternity coverage and are definitely in favour of the new bill. To them this is ridiculous and is essentially the denial of a basic service which they feel is their right. Those trying to change health plans to see if another one covers it will be even more shocked to discover that more than 85 percent of policies simply do not cover maternity.
In other states where a similar bill has been passed individual premium rates are higher but there needs to be some control as to how high these can go. The government health regulation should step in here. As it is women already pay almost 40% more for individual cover than men in California. Better regulation is the only answer to this situation.
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