Maternity care and your insurance policy: what to check before the baby arrives?
11-09-2026 — Kraamplein
Why it's worth checking your policy
Everyone with Dutch health insurance is entitled to maternity care through basic insurance — that doesn't vary by insurer (see What does maternity care cost and what's covered? for the general lines). What does vary is what a supplementary policy adds on top. Two people with exactly the same basic insurance can therefore end up with a very different bill, purely based on their supplementary package.
What's always the same?
- Basic insurance covers maternity care for mother and child, with a nationally set minimum and maximum number of hours.
- There's a statutory co-payment per hour, set annually by the national government — this amount is the same for everyone, regardless of insurer.
What can vary by policy?
- Reimbursement of the co-payment — some supplementary policies reimburse (part of) the co-payment, others don't.
- Maternity care package — with some insurers you get the maternity care package automatically and for free through the supplementary policy, with others you have to order it yourself or pay part of it.
- Deferred maternity care — care you use later than the usual period after the birth, for example due to complications; not every policy covers this the same way.
- Maternity care in hospital on medical grounds — if you give birth in hospital for medical reasons, the reimbursement for that can be arranged slightly differently than for a home birth.
When do you check this?
It's wise to look at your policy early in the pregnancy — not just at the intake interview. Switching to a different health insurer is usually only possible around the turn of the year, so if you want to make a different choice based on maternity care coverage, knowing where you stand early is essential.
Concrete questions to ask
Feel free to call or email your insurer, or look up the policy terms, and ask/search for:
- Does my supplementary policy reimburse (part of) the co-payment for maternity care?
- Is the maternity care package reimbursed, and if so, how do I request it?
- What happens to my reimbursement if I give birth in hospital on medical grounds?
- Is deferred maternity care covered, and under what conditions?
In short
- Basic insurance covers maternity care equally for everyone; the co-payment is set nationally.
- Supplementary policies vary in what they cover extra: co-payment, maternity care package, deferred maternity care, hospital admission on medical grounds.
- Check your policy early in the pregnancy — switching is usually only possible around the turn of the year.
- Call or email your insurer with concrete questions if the policy terms aren't clear.
Also read Maternity care after a caesarean section: what's different?
This article is general and informational and may be out of date or incomplete. It is not medical or personal advice; for your situation, what your midwife, GP or maternity care provider says applies. You cannot derive any rights from the content, and Kraamplein accepts no liability for damage arising from its use.
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