In the anxiety of getting back home with the baby, one tends to miss a lot of things that is required from the hospital administration to claim insurance and such. I recommend you making a list of all this much before your due date of delivery. If you are working and planning to claim insurance from your organization/insurance, it will be a good idea to talk to your HR or the insurance company about the policies and procedures before you go on maternity leave. If you are planning on using your husband's insurance policy, then you might have to remind him to do the same and firstly check if you are enrolled in his insurance coverage. A lot of previously working couples tend to miss this as each one had her own insurance. It will be lot of running around to get the paperwork done after you get discharged from the hospital for insurance, so finish it off before leaving.
Here are some questions that you might want to get clarified :
- How to initiate direct billing to the insurance company?
- Does the hospital where you plan to have your delivery support that insurance?
- Is there a limit for direct billing?
- What number to call before getting hospitalized?
- Do you have a copy of your insurance policy handy? Are your family members aware of it? If not, please educate them in case your husband is not around while you get admitted.
- If direct billing is not supported, then what documents will have to be furnished for claim afterward?
- Is there a time limit within which bills will have to be submitted to the insurance company post delivery? Does your organisation or insurance be informed immediately after the birth of the child?
- Do you require the registration umber of the gynaecologist/paediatrician for claiming?
- Do you need prescriptions for all medicines given at the hospital or will a blanket bill suffice?
A checklist of what you will need from the hospital before getting discharged:
- Discharge summary - very important
- Child's immunization schedule and what vaccines have been given at birth
- Medical bills and prescriptions. Educate your family members to preserve bills/presciptions in a file
- A letter from the doctor stating patient was admitted and discharged on such and such dates.
- Registering the birth of your child - check if the hospital does it?
- Hospitalization bill - room rent, operation costs etc etc
