Where to Find Paid Maternity Leave Benefits

In the U.S. paid maternity leave benefits can be hard to find. And many women miss out. They might assume things are already in place, wait too long, or think they can easily find the right programs when needed. This does not need to happen this way. There is a simple paid maternity leave for U.S. women, but you must look in the right place: voluntary individual short term disability insurance via employers.

No U.S. Paid Maternity Leave Policy

Many industrialized nations have paid maternity leave policies in place, but the U.S. stands alone: there is no federally mandated program in place. Five states have mandatory short term disability insurance programs for most workers, but that leaves forty five states with no such program. Unfortunately, many couples assume that government mandated paid leave programs are in place. Around delivery time, they begin looking for ways to apply for benefits, but find there is no government program available to help. By then it's too late.

Others have the option of purchasing short term disability insurance at work, which will replace a portion of their income during their maternity leave. Normal pregnancy is covered when coverage begins before conception. The typical policy pays a six week benefit for vaginal delivery and an eight week benefit for c-section delivery.

Coverage Must Start Preconception

But many couples wait too long before buying coverage. They look at the premium cost and get scared away; failing to realize that the benefit for normal delivery may cover several years' worth of premium cost. Once pregnant, it is too late to purchase coverage. Or they pass up on the opportunity to enroll during their employers' open enrollment period and then during the middle of the year decide it's time to get a policy just before getting pregnant. There is only one problem: they have to wait for the next open enrollment period to sign up.

No Individual Coverage Sold Direct

The largest segment of couples have no short term disability option available at work, and many go in search of an individual policy they can buy directly. Many women are reluctant to ask their employer for maternity benefits for fear of job discrimination. But there is one very big problem: there are no individual short term disability insurance options sold directly that cover pregnancy and maternity. You may be able to find individual coverage, but pregnancy and maternity will be excluded or there will be long waiting periods. Many women seek out a direct option, only to get pregnant before finding the coverage needed.

Voluntary Employee Benefits is The Answer

This does not have to keep happening. Women can have paid maternity leave in the U.S. by purchasing individual short term disability insurance via voluntary employee benefit options. Several insurers sell individual policies with maternity coverage through employer groups on a voluntary basis. There is no direct cost to employers, and the policy is owned by the policyholder - not the employer.

So it's easy to ask employers to make the option available, and if a woman were to leave her employer, she can keep her policy. Since the policies cover accidents and illnesses in addition to pregnancy and maternity, there is no stigma attached to asking employers to offer voluntary individual short term disability insurance.