[Women's Health, the New Insurance Battleground]①From Pregnancy to Postpartum Care... Behind the Coverage Race Lies the Challenge of Adverse Selection

Rising Maternal Age Leads to Broader Pregnancy and Childbirth Coverage

From Pregnancy Support Payments to Diagnostic Expenses: More Diverse Coverage Options

Coverage Expansion Calls for Stronger Risk Management Against Adverse Selection

Editor's NoteThe insurance industry’s focus is shifting toward the female life cycle. Traditionally centered on female-specific diseases, women's insurance has expanded in response to institutional changes to cover pregnancy and childbirth, and now covers daily health management needs such as menstruation, menopause, and mental health. As the average age of childbirth rises and the femtech industry grows, competition to address lifecycle-specific demand among women is intensifying. This article examines the evolving role of women's insurance, its changes, and the challenges ahead.

Insurance products covering pregnancy and childbirth are emerging as a new battleground in the insurance market. This is due to increased demand for infertility treatment, prenatal examinations, and postpartum care, all associated with rising maternal age. However, some analysts caution that since pregnancy and childbirth are closely tied to the policyholder’s personal plans and the likelihood of payout, expanding coverage could lead to adverse selection and increased loss ratios. As pregnancy and childbirth become part of the insurance product realm, striking a balance between broader coverage and risk management remains a challenge for insurers.

Expansion of Insurance Coverage as Older Childbirth Rises

According to the Ministry of Data and Statistics on September 26, 2026, the average age of mothers at childbirth last year was 33.8 years, up 0.2 years from a year earlier. The share of babies born to mothers aged 35 or older rose by 1.4 percentage points during the same period, reaching 37.3%. The average age for first-time mothers also climbed, hitting 33.2 years.

As the age of childbirth rises, attention is increasing on the medical expenses and various risks associated with pregnancy and childbirth. In response, the insurance sector is expanding its coverage beyond specific conditions during pregnancy and childbirth, now including support for preconception care, prenatal examinations, and postpartum care.

It is relatively recent that pregnancy and childbirth have been broadly addressed in insurance. In the 2024 Insurance Reform Meeting, regulatory authorities agreed to include pregnancy and childbirth among the risks that insurance products could cover. In the past, because insurance is characterized by covering “financial losses arising from unforeseen accidents,” there was ambiguity about whether pregnancy and childbirth qualified as insurable events. However, financial authorities decided that the randomness of pregnancy and its timing provided sufficient grounds to allow insurers to develop relevant products.

Among the guarantees currently offered by domestic insurers are amniotic fluid embolism, maternal death, hospital admission and surgery for pregnancy- and childbirth-related conditions, miscarriage, preeclampsia, premature placental abruption, and gestational diabetes. Some products provide coverage for C-section surgery or for treatments such as postpartum depression care, extending support into the postpartum period. For fetuses and newborns, coverage includes hospitalization for low birth weight, congenital metabolic disorders, and birth with disabilities.

Notably, the fifth-generation indemnity insurance, launched in May this year, newly included pregnancy- and childbirth-related reimbursed medical expenses, which were not covered under the previous fourth-generation plans. While earlier coverage was limited to lump-sum payments for supplementary riders, the new generation allows for reimbursement of actual medical expenses. To access this coverage, mothers must enroll in the indemnity insurance at least 280 days before the expected delivery date.

Coverage Extended to Prenatal Screening… Special Riders for Mothers in Child Insurance

Recently, pregnancy and childbirth coverage has expanded beyond specific conditions to include expenses for diagnostic testing received during pregnancy. Last month, Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance secured six months of exclusive rights for its “Good & Good Comprehensive Child Insurance” rider, which covers “chorionic villus sampling and amniocentesis expenses following abnormal prenatal screening results.” If an abnormality is detected in a prenatal screening and the insured undergoes chorionic villus sampling or amniocentesis, up to 700,000 won is provided for the first occurrence only. Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance explained, “Although chorionic villus sampling and amniocentesis are essential for detecting fetal chromosomal abnormalities, the high out-of-pocket expenses have been passed on to mothers as uninsured treatments. Following the coverage for intensive care for high-risk expectant mothers last year, this new coverage is expected to reduce both medical and psychological burdens on mothers.”

KB Insurance also offers a special rider for mothers as the insured under its fetal and child insurance, covering risks encountered during pregnancy and childbirth. Through its “Golden Child Insurance,” riders for pregnant women cover surgery and daily hospitalization benefits for pregnancy- and childbirth-related diseases, preeclampsia, surgery or hospitalization for miscarriage, and gestational diabetes.

Hanwha General Insurance includes pregnancy and childbirth support payments and postpartum care center expenses in its “Signature Women’s Health Insurance” product. A one-time payment of 500,000 won is given upon pregnancy, and a childbirth support payment is provided for up to the third childbirth. Infertility treatment is covered up to eight procedures (combining artificial and in vitro fertilization), and coverage extends to tests that improve implantation probabilities. After childbirth, both postpartum care center costs and child care expenses during maternal hospitalization are provided.

An insurance industry insider commented, “Among women in their 20s and 30s, there is growing demand for practical coverage corresponding to the reproductive life cycle, such as infertility treatment and postpartum care. These substantial maternity and parenting support riders are creating new market segments.” The source added, “As interest in lifecycle-specific women’s health increases, women’s insurance is becoming a key portfolio for insurers.”

How Are Overseas Products Designed… Risk Management as Important as Expanded Coverage

Overseas, insurance structures encompassing pregnancy through extended postnatal coverage are even more diverse. Global insurer Allianz covers prenatal screening, routine delivery without complications, C-section, and neonatal intensive care, with a waiting period of approximately 16 months. US-based insurer Cigna Global provides separate coverage limits for normal delivery and childbirth complications, with a waiting period of up to 24 months.

Japan’s Nissay offers women’s insurance for those aged 18 to 40, providing a payout for each birth, with benefit amounts increasing for every subsequent birth. There is no cap on the number of claims, and a one-year exclusion period applies after enrollment. In addition to childbirth, up to 12 instances of infertility treatment are covered, and the product also covers three major illnesses: cancer, acute myocardial infarction, and stroke.

In Singapore, there are products that extend guarantee into long-term insurance after childbirth. Multinational insurer Great Eastern, headquartered in Singapore, offers products that can be purchased from the 13th week of pregnancy, cover 18 types of pregnancy and childbirth complications, and 26 types of congenital diseases in newborns. After childbirth, the product can be converted to long-term insurance within a set period without additional underwriting.

These overseas products typically manage adverse selection risk by setting waiting periods or differentiating benefit limits even as they expand coverage. Adverse selection refers to a situation where individuals with higher likelihood of medical claims concentrate in insurance pools, increasing payout volume beyond insurers’ projections. On this topic, an insurance industry official said, “Pregnancy and childbirth coverage is unique in that the policyholder’s decision-making can influence the occurrence of a claim. To prevent intentional enrollment after pregnancy has already been established, minimum exclusion or reduction periods should be applied.” The source added, “While benefits should be broadened, comprehensive and sophisticated risk controls are needed to manage the overall risk rate.”

Domestically, while challenges such as managing adverse selection remain during the process of expanding coverage, demand for women's insurance is expected to increase because it can ease the economic burden on households facing pregnancy and childbirth, as well as help address demographic changes from low birth rates and population aging. Kyu-Dong Kim, research fellow at the Korea Insurance Research Institute, suggested, “Consumers can use pregnancy and childbirth insurance products to prepare for a variety of situations,” and, “Given efforts to increase birth rates, development of relevant insurance products could be considered.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.