Maternity Insurance Comparison: Evaluating Options for Coverage While Living Abroad
This deep-dive article compares 8 fabulous expat maternity insurance plans from international providers Cigna, VUMI, Allianz Care, and AXA. Allianz Care and AXA offer the shortest waiting periods, while Cigna has the highest annual plan limits and highest routine maternity coverage benefits.
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Are you an expatriate hoping to start a family in the near future but don’t know which expat maternity insurance plan you should pick? Are you wanting to better understand which plans you should consider and which factors you should compare?
This post is designed to guide you on this path!
We will compare the annual plan limits, the routine maternity care limit, waiting periods, deductibles and cost options, and other benefits offered in each plan. Our comparison can help you determine which plan fits your needs and budget best.
If you have questions, please contact our insurance experts. We are here to serve you! We also encourage you to use our free online insurance quote generator to compare plans, benefits, and premium costs for your country of residence.
A Comparison of the Top Expat Maternity Insurance Plans
This article will present a detailed comparison analysis of the following top international health insurance plans that have maternity benefits designed for expatriates living around the globe:
- Cigna Global’s Gold plan
- Cigna Global’s Platinum plan
- VUMI’s Global Flex VIP Ultra plan
- VUMI’s Global Flex VIP Total plan
- Allianz Care’s Bloom plan
- Allianz Care’s Bloom Plus plan
- AXA Global’s Prestige plan
- AXA Global’s Prestige Plus plan
Some of these providers include additional health insurance plans with maternity coverage, but for purposes of this blog post, we will not discuss them all. If you’re interested in learning more about these providers and their plans, you can contact one of our international insurance experts.
Note: As we make these comparisons, all of our monetary values will be in USD.
Allianz Care
Before we proceed, you need to understand a unique aspect of Allianz Care’s plans. When you select their plans, you select an inpatient benefits plan (either Care Plus or Care Pro) and an outpatient benefits plan (Active Plus or Active Pro). Depending on your selection, you can use the Bloom or Bloom Plus maternity benefits package.
For our purposes, we will discuss Allianz Care’s benefits under the assumption that if you are interested in the Bloom maternity package, you have selected a Care Plus and Active Plus combination. If you want the Bloom Plus maternity package, we’ll assume you’ve selected the Care Pro and Active Pro plans.
An Analysis of Expat Pregnancy Plans: Annual Limits
Of the eight top maternity insurance plans we are analyzing, Cigna’s Platinum plan has the highest annual maximum limit; its limit is unlimited. Cigna’s Gold plan has the lowest annual limit at $2,000,000, and there is a wide range of annual plan limits in between.
It is important to understand that these annual plan limits are the maximum cap for all benefits included in the international health insurance plan. That includes the inpatient, outpatient, and emergency medical benefits outlined in the plan, in addition to the maternity benefits.
The following chart details the annual plan limits for the grand total of all benefits each plan is able to offer. This information is helpful since you can see how comprehensive (or not) all other medical benefits will be in addition to the maternity benefits you’re interested in.
Chart Comparison of Expat Maternity Plans Annual Limits |
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Provider | Plan Name | Annual Limit |
Cigna Global | Gold | $2,000,000 |
Cigna Global | Platinum | Unlimited |
VUMI | Global Flex VIP Ultra | $4,500,000 |
VUMI | Global Flex VIP Total | $5,000,000 |
Allianz Care | Bloom | $4,000,000 |
Allianz Care | Bloom Plus | $5,000,000 |
AXA Global | Prestige | $3,200,000 |
AXA Global | Prestige Plus | $8,000,000 |
Expat Pregnancy Insurance: Routine Maternity Limits
The expatriate pregnancy insurance plan with the highest routine maternity care limit is Cigna’s Platinum plan with a benefit total of $21,000. The plan with the lowest routine maternity care maximum is Allianz Care’s Bloom plan with a benefit limit of $6,750.
Each provider may define “routine maternity care” differently, so it is important you read a comprehensive description of each plan’s benefits before you pick your plan. That way you can know which treatments, procedures, and medications, etc., count as “routine care” and what doesn’t.
The following chart details the limit for the routine maternity care each plan can offer.
Expat Maternity Plans Comparison: Routine Maternity Limits |
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Provider | Plan Name | Routine Maternity Care |
Cigna Global | Gold | Inpatient: $7,000
Outpatient: $3,500 |
Cigna Global | Platinum | Inpatient: $14,000
Outpatient: $7,000 |
VUMI | Global Flex VIP Ultra | $15,000 |
VUMI | Global Flex VIP Total | $20,000 |
Allianz Care | Bloom | $6,750 |
Allianz Care | Bloom Plus | $13,500 |
AXA Global | Prestige | $16,000 |
AXA Global | Prestige Plus | $19,200 |
A Comparison of Expat Maternity Insurance: Waiting Periods
Allianz Care and AXA have the shortest maternity insurance waiting periods at 10 months. VUMI and Cigna are in a close second as their waiting periods are 12 months long.
A waiting period for a maternity insurance plan is the time you have to have a plan established before certain benefits will take effect. The purpose of these periods is to help protect an insurance company from individuals who sign up for a plan immediately before their medical bills skyrocket.
The following chart will show the waiting periods for each of the top expat maternity insurance plans we are discussing.
Chart Comparison of Expat Maternity Plans Waiting Periods |
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Provider | Plan Name | Waiting Periods |
Cigna Global | Gold | 12 – 24 months |
Cigna Global | Platinum | 12 – 24 months |
VUMI | Global Flex VIP Ultra | 12 months |
VUMI | Global Flex VIP Total | 12 months |
Allianz Care | Bloom | 10 months |
Allianz Care | Bloom Plus | 10 months |
AXA Global | Prestige | 10 – 18 months |
AXA Global | Prestige Plus | 10 – 18 months |
Some plans have different waiting periods depending on the specific benefit in question.
For example, Cigna’s maternity waiting periods are only 12 months long for routine maternity care, newborn care, and other benefits, but the infertility investigation and treatment benefit has a 24-month waiting period.
To learn more specifically about each waiting period, you can contact us.
International Pregnancy Coverage: Deductibles & Costs
Most international health insurance plans with maternity benefits have various deductible and cost options expats can choose from. The maternity packages offered by Cigna, VUMI, AXA, and Allianz Care are the same. The deductible options you select affect what your premium costs will be.
It is very hard to predict what your premium cost will be when talking in generalizations in a blog post, such as this. Premium costs are often affected by a lot of things, including:
- Your age
- Length of coverage
- Your destination/country of residence
- If you have pre-existing health conditions
- Which optional add-ons you’ve added to your health plan
- The deductible and out-of-pocket maximum you select
So, while we can’t predict exactly how much any of these health insurance plans may cost you specifically, we can present the various deductible and cost-share options offered to you by each provider.
These various options work as a sliding scale. Typically, the higher the deductible, cost share percentage, and out-of-pocket maximum you commit to paying, the lower your premium will be.
Here are some definitions to help you understand these terms.
- Deductible: The amount you must pay before any claims are covered by your plan.
- Cost Share/Coinsurance After Deductible: This is the percentage of each claim that is not covered by your plan, but which you must cover instead.
- Out-of-Pocket Maximum: This is the total amount of money you must pay on healthcare services per year. Once you’ve met this maximum, your health plan pays 100% of all covered costs for the rest of the year.
Cigna’s Deductible and Cost Share Options |
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Your Options | Gold Plan | Platinum Plan |
Deductible | $0 / $375 / $750 / $1,500 / $3,000 / $7,500 / $10,000 | $0 / $375 / $750 / $1,500 / $3,000 / $7,500 / $10,000 |
Cost Share/ Coinsurance after Deductible | Choose your cost share percentage: 0% / 10% / 20% / 30% | Choose your cost share percentage: 0% / 10% / 20% / 30% |
Out-of-Pocket Maximum | Next, choose your out-of-pocket maximum: $2,000 or $5,000 | Next, choose your out-of-pocket maximum: $2,000 or $5,000 |
VUMI’s Deductible and Cost Share Options |
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Your Options | Global Flex Ultra Plan | Global Flex Total Plan |
Deductible | $0 / $1,000 / $2,000 / $5,000 / $10,000 / $15,000 / $20,000 | $0 / $1,000 / $2,000 / $5,000 / $10,000 / $15,000 / $20,000 |
Cost Share/ Coinsurance after Deductible | $15 out-patient per visit excess / $30 out-patient per visit excess / 10% / 20% / 30% | $15 out-patient per visit excess / $30 out-patient per visit excess / 10% / 20% / 30% |
Out-of-Pocket Maximum | If 10% co-share, then max is $2,000 / If 20% co-share, then max is $4,000 / If 30% co-share, then max is $6,000 | If 10% co-share, then max is $2,000 / If 20% co-share, then max is $4,000 / If 30% co-share, then max is $6,000 |
Allianz Care’s Deductible and Cost Share Options |
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Your Options | Bloom Plan | Bloom Plus Plan |
Deductible | $610 / $1,015 / $2,025 / $4,050 / $8,100 / $13,500 | $610 / $1,015 / $2,025 / $4,050 / $8,100 / $13,500 |
Cost Share/ Coinsurance after Deductible | No Co-payment / 10% / 20% / 30% | No Co-payment / 10% / 20% / 30% |
Out-of-Pocket Maximum | No Co-payment / $2,000 / $4,000 / $5,000 | No Co-payment / $2,000 / $4,000 / $5,000 |
If you have any questions about how these cost options work, please let us know.
Contrasting Maternity Insurance Plans While Abroad: Benefits
All 8 expat maternity insurance plans we are analyzing offer worldwide coverage with the optional exclusion of the United States. Each of our plans by Cigna, VUMI, Allianz Care, and AXA also includes inpatient hospitalization, routine maternity care, pregnancy and childbirth complications, and more.
We intentionally chose to analyze these 8 maternity insurance plans because they all have the essential maternity benefits a mother-to-be should seek when living abroad as an expatriate. Each provider, however, will have a different monetary limit for each benefit.
It is your job to make sure the plan you select has a limit that meets your needs.
A Comparison of Benefits Included in Expat Maternity Plans |
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Benefit Type | Cigna Global: Gold and Platinum | VUMI: Global Flex VIP Ultra and Total | Allianz Care: Bloom and Bloom Plus | AXA Global: Prestige and Prestige Plus |
Inpatient Hospitalization | ||||
Routine Maternity Care | ||||
Pregnancy Complications | ||||
Childbirth Complications | ||||
Elective C-Section | ||||
Emergency/ Medically Necessary C-Section | ||||
Newborn Care |
To learn more about the specific benefits included in each maternity coverage package, send us a message today. You can also compare quotes for international health insurance plans with our quote generator.
Conclusion
We’ve now carefully analyzed many features of these 8 insurance plans. Hopefully, you have a better idea of which provider or which plan would suit your needs, budget, and situation.
If you found value in this article, you will also want to read our posts Best Insurance Plan for Pregnancy as an Expat and Understanding Waiting Periods: Key Considerations for Expats Seeking Maternity Coverage.
Good luck with insurance hunting!
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