Re: re:Switching health insurance during pregnancy
Hey Clubman, going to answer them all, hopefully, this is my understanding!
Presumably the maternity waiting period is waived if continuous cover of more than 52 weeks (or whatever it is) has been "served"?
Yes
Will the first insurer pay out benefits for care up to the point of the switch and the second insurer will pay out benefits thereafter?
Possibly, the second insurer could pay the whole amount and submit a claim to the first insurer for the amount prior to the switch though
Will the enhanced benefits of the "higher" plan be available immediately on switching and, if now, how do they decide what benefits will be available since it's nearly impossible to compare like with like across different health insurers?
No, a pre-existing condition (I know pregnancy is not an illness) has a "bedding-in" period, and maternity cover is treated in the same manner. While it's a piece of string question to compare like with like across insurers, most would operate a policy that could be broadly compared with another - So say you are on Plan B with the VHI, then you would benefit from Essential Plus on BUPA for the purposes of the pregnancy.
Are you faced with the excess under the first insurer's policy at the start of treatment and the excess under the second insurer's policy or do insurers facilitate only facing the excess once for a course of care/treatment when switching during this time? I can't say - it's unclear, I would recommend speaking directly to the companies concerned, and definitely get a response IN WRITING!!