Adding baby to insurance---his, not mine

StayingFocused · April 2016

Anyone adding baby to their spouse's insurance instead of their own? I'm just trying to think ahead of any possible complications that might come up since i'm assuming most people add on to their own. With our situation, it just makes more sense to add him to DH insurance because it is cheaper and it's a better plan. I've already let my OB office know and they have a copy of DH card but i'm wondering if there is something i'm overlooking that may end up being an issue with hospital billing. I will obviously have both our cards at the hospital but, i'm a planner. Everything on my hospital pre-registration and epidural paperwork seems like it just needs info for me but i may include a copy of DH card with it just in case. Any thoughts?

huskypuppy14 · April 2016

StayingFocused said:

Anyone adding baby to their spouse's insurance instead of their own? I'm just trying to think ahead of any possible complications that might come up since i'm assuming most people add on to their own. With our situation, it just makes more sense to add him to DH insurance because it is cheaper and it's a better plan. I've already let my OB office know and they have a copy of DH card but i'm wondering if there is something i'm overlooking that may end up being an issue with hospital billing. I will obviously have both our cards at the hospital but, i'm a planner. Everything on my hospital pre-registration and epidural paperwork seems like it just needs info for me but i may include a copy of DH card with it just in case. Any thoughts?

Is there a reason you are not on your husband's insurance too? When I got married, I added my husband to my insurance since mine was better than his. So I"m not in your situation, but I would say most married couples have the same health insurance.

Anyway, have your husband check with his insurance company or HR department. Usually, there is a time limit (mine is 30 days) where as long as you enroll your baby within 30 days of birth, the insurance company will cover the medical costs of the baby. I think having both insurance cards is good. The hospital has the information, but you and H have to make sure your baby actually gets enrolled. My employer makes it easy, since I just do it through them, so I don't have to deal with the insurance company myself.

almostpriceless · April 2016

My husband and I work for the same company. Our benefits are company paid and it's actually cheaper for them to have us on separate plans. I carry the kids on mine and have him listed as an authorized representative so that he can call to get information in case of an emergency. We had 30 days after birth to officially add our last baby and will have the same grace period after this one. Like @huskypuppy14 said, my company handles everything. We just had to provide the baby's SSN once it was received, which takes about 2 weeks.

StayingFocused · April 2016

We each have ours through our employers. Individually it has always worked better that way since they pay most or all of ours ( the employee). But since one of us has to add a family member, his is the better one.

ahernandez16 · April 2016

I'm still on my parents' plan because I'm under 26. H's parents are assholes and kicked him off theirs last year despite not costing them anymore to have him on there and him not being 26 yet so he had to get his own. We'll be adding the baby to his because we can't add him to my parents plan or getting the baby his own plan. It'll depend on what is cheaper/better. I don't see any problem with either. You can be named an authorized representative on your H's insurance so that you can obtain records and such. My baby will have coverage from the day he's born until the end of that month under my parent's plan though so we have a little time to get him situated.

gauge1234 · April 2016

I was just thinking about this.

H and I are on each other's plans. It's good for him as he had needed extra coverage for physiotherapy after surgery.

I was thinking of adding baby to both as well but that might be a bit much.

Our benefits are both company benefits

HBamama2B · April 2016

StayingFocused said:

We each have ours through our employers. Individually it has always worked better that way since they pay most or all of ours ( the employee). But since one of us has to add a family member, his is the better one.

This is not uncommon, so you're not as alone as you think.

He can call the number on the back of his card and speak to a benefits representative to find out specifics for enrollment and grace periods, but it shouldn't be an issue. Generally speaking they will back date coverage. I recommend going straight to the insurance since they'll often have better details than HR.

cmac827 · April 2016

The baby is automatically covered under your insurance for the first 30 days. During that time you have to add the baby to whatever insurance. It's a pretty easy thing to do. The hospital will automatically bill your insurance for the baby.

PBear93 · April 2016

Often, unless there are complications with the baby and they need a visit to the NICU, the baby will be covered under your hospital stay and then you have 30 days to add them to the plan of your choice.

rbflei · April 2016

Call both insurances. Make sure they are both awaere of the situation and have them talk you through who to notify and which policy covers what\who and when. Make sure they both give you the same story and sometimes it is helpful to actually have a three way call with the other insurance or hospital which your insurance can initiate. But, even then, people do make errors so be ready for a few. Billing and coding can be super tricky.

CopperLane · April 2016

This is a good topic! Thanks for bringing it up.

It's not unusual at all for a married couple to be on separate plans! My husband and I get PPO coverage from our employers and it's cheaper this way than bumping onto one plan. I pay $60 a month with my employer but if I wanted to get on his plan I'd be paying $300/month. Soooo not worth it!!

We chose to add the baby to the better coverage option which happened to be the cheaper option as well, win/win. We were planning on asking the ped about hospital costs, etc., once we pick one and go from there but I'm glad you started this thread because there is a lot of good advice here!!

huskypuppy14 · April 2016

cmac827 said:

The baby is automatically covered under your insurance for the first 30 days. During that time you have to add the baby to whatever insurance. It's a pretty easy thing to do. The hospital will automatically bill your insurance for the baby.

Not for everything. Routine delivery care/nursery care yes. Nicu and pediatricians not necessarily. My insurance plan specifically says you have to add the baby to the plan, and not all things are automatically covered on the mothers plan.
Again, as long as you add the baby in the amount of time the insurance company needs, everything will be retroactive to birth. So even if you do get a bill, if the baby is added to husband's plan, it'll get paid. Obviously, the baby has a lot of doctor appointments in the first year of life, so you'll want them to have their own coverage through one of your plans anyway.

I kind of forgot about people that are under 26 and plans that employers cover the employee but not the dependents/spouse. My employer covers 90% of all premium costs of employee/spouse/dependents but I realize not all do.

alitria · April 2016

My husband and I work for the same school district but we have our own plans because that's how we have to do it to get any employer paid coverage. We added my son to my husband's policy because I was on unpaid leave and he wasn't. We'll add the new baby to his as well because it's cheaper to have both kids on the same plan. I'd prefer we all be on one plan, but it would cost $1,000 a month if I was on my husband's instead of the $250 I pay now for my own. It seems like it's common enough now that it's never been a big issue, just be sure you're contacting both companies as people mentioned above. The birth of a child is considered a qualifying event for adding someone outside the normal enrollment period so it should be pretty straightforward.

purplefan1 · April 2016

Somewhat off topic but on topic at the same time- when I was born in the early 80s my sister had just been diagnosed with a brain tumor and was undergoing treatment. She was 2 at the time. My parents were pretty preoccupied with that, so despite the fact that I was their 4th child, contacting insurance right away didn't even cross their minds. Unfortunately they missed the window of opportunity and BCBS refused to pay for my birth. So on top of the obscene bills they had for my sister being in PICU for months, they had to pay OOP for my birth. I've judged BCBS negatively ever since. And I've made my husband track down all the info he will need to add baby to his insurance and plan on making him call ASAP. Also, if you have a boy don't you need to contact insurance sooner if you plan to circumsize?

lolonvive · April 2016

Call your insurance and see how long the baby is covered under yours -- my insurance covers baby for 2 days.
Here's why: I was grandfathered into an awesome plan from my parents that would have covered me thru 29 (I'm 28), and H is on his own private plan. For several reasons, H cant add baby, and neither can I.
What I am doing is joining my employer's insurance, and adding baby with me. But I can't actually join outside of the enrollment period until she is actually born, which is something called a Qualifying Life Event (QLE) that allows you to enroll outside of open enrollment.
The new insurance told me that baby and I will both be covered retroactively from her birth.
If you don't get baby's birth certificate right away, ask for an official letter from the hospital so you can get the ball rolling with your employer and the insurance company ASAP.

snowhite12 · April 2016

My H and I are on separate plans. Its cheaper for us this way. This baby will be put on his. We have already spoken to the HR dept. at his work who gave me their insurance agent's info. I already spoke with the insurance agent who asked me to call within a few days after DS is born. We are going to fill out DS's insurance form at the beginning of next month in preparation.

snowhite12 · April 2016

June2016BabyW said:

Somewhat off topic but on topic at the same time- when I was born in the early 80s my sister had just been diagnosed with a brain tumor and was undergoing treatment. She was 2 at the time. My parents were pretty preoccupied with that, so despite the fact that I was their 4th child, contacting insurance right away didn't even cross their minds. Unfortunately they missed the window of opportunity and BCBS refused to pay for my birth. So on top of the obscene bills they had for my sister being in PICU for months, they had to pay OOP for my birth. I've judged BCBS negatively ever since. And I've made my husband track down all the info he will need to add baby to his insurance and plan on making him call ASAP. Also, if you have a boy don't you need to contact insurance sooner if you plan to circumsize?

I actually didn't know this until doing some research (I'm having my first boy) some insurance companies don't even cover circumcision since it is not medically necessary.
My H has CareFirst BCBS of Maryland and they do cover circumcision. His insurance agent said to call him within a few days after DS is born. We are going to call before we get out of the hospital.

mimi_8607 · April 2016

huskypuppy14 said:

StayingFocused said:

Anyone adding baby to their spouse's insurance instead of their own? I'm just trying to think ahead of any possible complications that might come up since i'm assuming most people add on to their own. With our situation, it just makes more sense to add him to DH insurance because it is cheaper and it's a better plan. I've already let my OB office know and they have a copy of DH card but i'm wondering if there is something i'm overlooking that may end up being an issue with hospital billing. I will obviously have both our cards at the hospital but, i'm a planner. Everything on my hospital pre-registration and epidural paperwork seems like it just needs info for me but i may include a copy of DH card with it just in case. Any thoughts?

Is there a reason you are not on your husband's insurance too? When I got married, I added my husband to my insurance since mine was better than his. So I"m not in your situation, but I would say most married couples have the same health insurance.

Anyway, have your husband check with his insurance company or HR department. Usually, there is a time limit (mine is 30 days) where as long as you enroll your baby within 30 days of birth, the insurance company will cover the medical costs of the baby. I think having both insurance cards is good. The hospital has the information, but you and H have to make sure your baby actually gets enrolled. My employer makes it easy, since I just do it through them, so I don't have to deal with the insurance company myself.

I wouldn't say the bolded is totally true. Most place around my area charge you an extra $50 fee a month if you are offered insurance at your job but want to go on your spouses insurance. So most of the time it's cheaper to go on your own plan.

purplefan1 · April 2016

mimi_8607 said:

huskypuppy14 said:

StayingFocused said:

Anyone adding baby to their spouse's insurance instead of their own? I'm just trying to think ahead of any possible complications that might come up since i'm assuming most people add on to their own. With our situation, it just makes more sense to add him to DH insurance because it is cheaper and it's a better plan. I've already let my OB office know and they have a copy of DH card but i'm wondering if there is something i'm overlooking that may end up being an issue with hospital billing. I will obviously have both our cards at the hospital but, i'm a planner. Everything on my hospital pre-registration and epidural paperwork seems like it just needs info for me but i may include a copy of DH card with it just in case. Any thoughts?

Is there a reason you are not on your husband's insurance too? When I got married, I added my husband to my insurance since mine was better than his. So I"m not in your situation, but I would say most married couples have the same health insurance.

Anyway, have your husband check with his insurance company or HR department. Usually, there is a time limit (mine is 30 days) where as long as you enroll your baby within 30 days of birth, the insurance company will cover the medical costs of the baby. I think having both insurance cards is good. The hospital has the information, but you and H have to make sure your baby actually gets enrolled. My employer makes it easy, since I just do it through them, so I don't have to deal with the insurance company myself.

I wouldn't say the bolded is totally true. Most place around my area charge you an extra $50 fee a month if you are offered insurance at your job but want to go on your spouses insurance. So most of the time it's cheaper to go on your own plan.

I don't even know how I got in the quote box this time!! One of the many flaws of the health insurance available in the US. It would make more sense to have families on the same plan. Same providers, family deductibles, etc. But my husband's company does the same. If u have no health insurance offered, I can be on his for a small cost. If I have it offered but want to stay on his, there is a surcharge of $100 or so. Still less than I would pay for my own health insurance but this year I worked enough contract hours that my work had to offer me health insurance under affordable care act so this year we get stuck with a charge. And even suckier, since my ability to be on the health insurance plan is contingent on how many hours I work a year (which can be very flexible) then every year I would risk losing the coverage or keeping it. Easier to pay to stay on his but it all feels like hoops to jump through.

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