Bonitas Pregnancy Waiting Period
What is the Bonitas pregnancy waiting period? It’s something that you will be wondering about if you are a potential Bonitas client. The company is one of the biggest medical insurance entities in South Africa. Like every other firm of this nature, there is a waiting period for new clients. These waiting periods tend to be different from company to company. However, they are generally longer for maternity related care. So, what is the Bonitas maternity waiting period?
Maternity waiting period for Bonitas
The Bonitas pregnancy waiting period is 12 months. Within this period, you will not be able to claim cover from the company. Like most medical aid companies that are out there, Bonitas will not cover a pre-existing pregnancy.
Why are waiting periods longer for pregnancy?
That’s the Bonitas pregnancy waiting period. We noted in the introduction to this post that waiting periods are longer for pregnancy related care. Why is that the case?
The major reason for this is that maternity care tends to be more expensive that general medical care. The costs are compounded in the event that a woman encounters complications.
In general, the costs of pregnancy can be as much as R60000. That can rise drastically in the event that there is need for hospitalization. In some cases, maternity care can cost as much as R1 million.
Why have waiting periods in the first place?
Waiting periods are longer for pregnancy, but why do insurance companies need to have waiting periods in the first place? Wouldn’t it better for people to simply join today and start getting treatment there and then?
The major reason why medical insurance companies impose waiting periods is to protect themselves from fraud. Insurance works because few people claim. These people are carried by others who do not claim. When it becomes your turn to claim, you are covered by others.
Should people be allowed to join simply because they wish to get treatment, that would upset the whole structure of these companies’ operations. Waiting periods ensure that people contribute to some degree before they can start benefitting.
And these periods are longer for some conditions such as cancer and pregnancy, because these conditions are rather expensive to treat.
Summary
This article was dedicated to showing you the Bonitas pregnancy waiting period. It was noted that you will only get treatment if you have been with the medical aid company for at least 12 months. They will not cover a pre-existing pregnancy. That’s something that you need to keep in mind when planning for a new baby.
Learn how to submit a claim to Bonitas