By Koh Hui Theng

PARENTS who are keen to do their 'national duty' by boosting Singapore's flagging birth rate enjoy a slew of incentives.

But for many first-time mothers and fathers, the desire to plan ahead and ensure a quality life for Junior takes priority over other concerns.

Expectant mother Melissa Lee, 32, is looking forward to her firstborn, who is due next month. The marketing manager has already given him his name, Ethan, but she feels lost when it comes to longer term arrangements.

'My husband and I have made basic preparations like buying furniture, clothes and nursing equipment.

We even agreed to do cord-blood banking, just in case our baby needs it in the future. But we're completely clueless where insurance is concerned,' she said.

Their hospital, Thomson Medical Centre, provides a first-born incentive scheme that offers Ethan free insurance for his first six months.

'Having some form of insurance is always helpful, even if it's just a token sum,' she said, but added that she may consider an add-on.

To help out the Lees, my paper asked Aviva chief executive Simon Newman and Manulife Singapore director for financial services Doris Ng, along with experts from TM Asia Life (Singapore) and NTUC Income, for advice.

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