SAHM insurance question

shellyamf

This has probably already been brought up, but I honestly can't remember.  For those of you who are or plan to be SAHMs, what did/do you do for insurance?  DH's open enrollment period is in July.  Obviously I'm due in March.  I'll be on my insurance until I run out of vacation time for my maternity leave.  That will probably take me through April.  I know we can add the baby to DH's insurance at birth, but that leaves me without coverage for at least two months.  Did anyone have a similar situation? Did you find coverage somewhere else for that short period or did you just go without?  TIA!

Sparkles01

Not a SAHM, but you don't have to enroll during the open enrollment period...life events like marriage and babies do not require the wait for the open enrollment.  I believe they just need to be done within 31 days of the birth.  He can check with his company's benefits department for their exact company policies though.

gundy21

Your loss of coverage should also qualify as a change in life status that should allow you to be added on to his plan outside of open enrollment.  We just did that a couple weeks ago for my DH.  Just like a birth, it needs to be done within 31 days of the status change.

magel050485

You can be added to his insurance within 30 days of quitting your job as loss of insurance is reason to make changes outside of open enrollment.

We went with BCBS private insurance for DS and myself.  To add us to my husband's policy would have been $1200/month and we pay $400/month for private insurance.  I would speak to a private broker and price out your options before making any decisions.  

CloudBee

Often a life event also = a spouse losing coverage by leaving their job.

shellyamf

Thanks everyone. I didn't know loss of coverage qualified as a life event. I knew the baby would be covered.  I just called DH and he is emailing his HR department to find out about the loss of coverage for me.

LiteraryFoodie

Sparkles01:

Not a SAHM, but you don't have to enroll during the open enrollment period...life events like marriage and babies do not require the wait for the open enrollment.  I believe they just need to be done within 31 days of the birth.  He can check with his company's benefits department for their exact company policies though.

This. When MH and I got married in summer of 2009, I was able to be retroactively added to the policy--effective on our wedding day. I've been on his insurance ever since (because it was always better than anything I was offered). Call your husband's insurance company though and see what their policy is. 

lynn3yb00

So long as there is no gap in coverage, you can change insurance companies, and still have the same coverage, to the best of my knowledge.