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Insurance - pregnancy excludes me from SDI?

nalvaradonalvarado member
in Working Moms
I've been offered my dream job ( they don't know I'm 13 weeks preggo) and I'm ecstatic. Or, I was until my HR mom asked me about insurance stuff. She says I won't qualify for FMLA (I live in Cali) since I'll have worked for the employer for less than a year when I have the baby, and I won't qualify for Short term disability because they will see pregnancy as a pre-existing condition since I signed up for the policy while I was already deemed pregnant by a dr.

I'm still willing to give up six weeks pay for a job that will make me happier, but did anyone out there have experience with this? Or better yet, do any of you work for American Fidelity since that's who the new company's SDI carrier is?

Please give any advice!!!!
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Re: Insurance - pregnancy excludes me from SDI?

  • MynaBirdMynaBird member
    No firsthand experience with SDI, but lots of experience dealing with insurance companies, and I would have been really surprised if they would have let you enroll in an SDI plan while pregnant. Since you'd be filing a claim in short order, it's sort of like buying car insurance after you've already been in the wreck.
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  • nalvaradonalvarado member
    So even though I'm applying during the open enrollment period, they can still exclude me from SDI?
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  • MynaBirdMynaBird member
    Without knowing the specific details of your plan, I'd say yes, they can. Basically they'd be selling you (or your employer) a policy to insure you against something they already know you're experiencing. And the whole insurance business model only works if they pay out less in claims than they collect in premiums, so they're not going to be inclined to write you a policy if they know you're going to cash in on it. To use another insurance analogy, it would be kind of like writing a homeowner's policy for a house that's currently on fire. Even though it makes sense if you look at it from the insurance company's perspective, it sucks that you won't get that benefit. I'm sorry, and I totally sympathize. I've been interviewing for new jobs while pregnant, too, and the whole insurance hassle makes it so much more stressful.
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  • nalvaradonalvarado member
    I just feel like this is fundamentally wrong. By saying pregnancy is a pre existing condition to exclude women during an open enrollment period, they are discriminating against half of the population. Men, obviously, cannot get pregnant and would therefore never have to deal with this rejection.

    I thought the new health care laws stopped insurance companies from labeling pregnancy as a pre existing condition.
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  • financialdivafinancialdiva member
    Do you currently have STD?

    I was pg during open enrollment, however, I have been working for the same company for 5 years and had been paying into it for that long. They switched std providers last year. I asked would my pg be considered a pre-existing condition with this new insurance company they said no bc I had been paying into a policy since before I got pg. I have no idea if this will apply to your situation since you are switching jobs.

    Also, doesn't Cali have a state run STD? So why would it matter if you switched jobs?

    Health Insurance company's can't, and haven't used pg as a pre-existing condition IF you can prove continuous coverage. Meaning you can't have a lapse in coverage (however, this might have changed with the ACA).

    I have absolutely no idea if any of this is helpful, just thought I would let you know my experience.
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  • financialdivafinancialdiva member
    @wife07mom09 I know she isn't talking about health insurance in her OP. Again, IF YOU WOULD READ BEFORE YOU TYPE, you would see that in her post right above mine she mentions how she thought the ACA stopped insurance companies from labeling pregnancy as a preexisting condition. That was what I was addressing in my post.
    nalvarado said:
    I just feel like this is fundamentally wrong. By saying pregnancy is a pre existing condition to exclude women during an open enrollment period, they are discriminating against half of the population. Men, obviously, cannot get pregnant and would therefore never have to deal with this rejection. I thought the new health care laws stopped insurance companies from labeling pregnancy as a pre existing condition.

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  • iverske9iverske9 member
    I am currently in your situation. I just accepted a position to a dream job at 11 weeks and I will not qualify for STD or paid maternity. My husband and I discussed it and it has more pros than cons so we are hankering down and saving money for my maternity leave (I will take 8 weeks)
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  • Maybride2Maybride2 member
    No, you will not qualify for any type of federal STD or FMLA. Yes, it is actually absolutely fair and not discriminatory. Pregnancy is not the only pre-existing condition. When I last accepted a new job and went through the STD sign-up paperwork, basically nothing was covered for 90 days, and nothing diagnosed during that time would be covered. Like the previous posters have pointed out, that would be like approving a homeowners policy for a house that is on fire. Insurance companies aren't typically in it for charity/the good of the people.
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