Pregnancy and childbirth hospital services come with a 12-month waiting period. The only way to get this waiting period waived is if you've already served it with another health fund.
Be aware though. Even if you've been with a fund for years, it won't count that time unless you've held a policy that covers childbirth.
So, if you have a bronze-level hospital policy for 10 years and upgrade to gold so you're covered for childbirth, you'll still have to wait another 12 months before you can claim.
This means you should lock in gold-level cover before you start trying to have a baby. Otherwise, you won't be able to take advantage of those benefits.
However, there are some pregnancy benefits you may be able to access without serving a 12-month waiting period – but only out-of-hospital services. Some extras policies include benefits for prenatal and postnatal services, such as birthing classes, lactation consultants and visits from a registered midwife.