Medical Insurance

[mitchpa13 0]

Hello everyone,

I was hoping to find out information about medical insurance for my Fianceé that is coming in May. Although my work will offer her medical insurance, it is at a rediculous price!

What would be the options for my fiancee to get insurance? What about Obamacare? Must we be married before she can apply?

Thank you so much for your help!

Mitchell

[Pitaya 2,577]

~Moved from K-1 Process to General Immigration-Related Discussion Forum~

~Inquiry applicable to several immigration processes~

[D N Medellin COL 75]

Mitchell,

I feel your pain, a year ago I went to add my wife onto my company health plan but at +/- $850./month because of pre-existing conditions was just too expensive and to top it off had many exclusions and high deductable (like $10k).

Over the past week I have looked hard into Obamacare and am getting ready to pull the trigger - This is what I have learned, We are now in OPEN ENROLLMENT that ends March 31st! Otherwise you have to wait for the next opening which I think is in October/November but thats for the 2015 coverage period.

I have found, here in California, that I could get her and my step son covered for about $250. min to about $500./month which I think I will take the mid road of about $350./month.

I don't think you need to be married but don't take my word for it, please just do the research as there is much information on line.

Good luck to you both!

[Lynkali 163]

I don't THINK your fiancee will be eligible for Obamacare because as the previous poster said, open enrollment ends March 31. However, I have not researched whether Obamacare has the same sort of "qualifying event" openings as other insurance companies -- if so, it's likely that her move here and/or your marriage will be a "qualifying event" that lets her purchase/start insurance on the exchange outside of the normal enrollment times. So she could then purchase it when she arrives, possibly. As far as I know she could purchase/enroll on her own, independently of you, if that's the most logical choice.

She could also purchase insurance on the open market -- that varies tremendously in price and quality and they might even require different residency lengths, so you'd have to inquire with various companies to get quotes and policy info on your own. In general it's actually easier to browse your state exchange, since you can at least get general price ideas and options there, even if you don't sign up.

Obamacare is far from perfect, and depending on your state, the website may still be very difficult -- but in general, anyone who is legally present in the USA is allowed to sign up. You will have to show valid immigration status: for example, we first signed up with only my husband's I-94 (from K-1) as legal status, then updated our status over the phone when he received his EAD. We actually still need to call again, now that he has his green card, but it's all working quite correctly even with only his EAD. I am really grateful for Obamacare, because without it, my husband would not have any insurance, and mine would be running out in less than a year -- at least this way, we can continue our joint coverage at a substantially lower cost together, despite the website and enrollment headaches.

[mitchpa13 0]

Thank you all very much for your help. I will definitely look more into Obamacare and maybe just call some insurance companies to say what possiblities there are.

Again, thanks for taking the time to respond and help!

Mitchell