Insure your pregnancy

It was only a matter of time before some forward thinking (read: money hungry) insurance company decided to swoop down on pregnant women as 'valued customers' in order to "keep pace with social trends and advances in medical technology".



ING has recently announced it it's new 'baby cover' as a way for pregnant women to 'insure' their pregnancies in the face of medical complication. Basically, women who have an ectopic pregnancy or eclampsia will get a $50,000 lump sum, while stillbirths qualify for a $10,000 payout (you would think it would be the other way around?!). As you might already have gathered, the insurance policy is aimed at 'older' mothers who are 'high risk' and the most inclined to be freaking out about their 'risk' constantly and therefore would be more willing to shell out money for insurance. As your age rises, so does your premium.


This makes me so insanely angry. Pregnant women are freaked out enough as it is. With all of the rules about everything from food to the kind of clothing you're 'allowed' to wear when you're pregnant, the idea that women need another institution telling them that they need to protect the lives of their unborn with the prospect of a massive financial pay out is ridiculous. The conditions that are covered under the policy are very rare and most women are very unlikely to develop them. Yet, now that the policy exists, more women will think that they have to insure themselves.

This is such a blatant money grab and ING does not provide incidence rates so women can assess whether they fall into a 'risk' category.

Sources: http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/insurer-to-cover-birth-defects/2008/04/26/1208743326626.html