Health insurance for spouse immediately after arriving?

[tofulollipop 7]

So we're waiting on my wife's visa interview to be scheduled still for her CR-1 visa before she can come to the US. However, how does health insurance work once she arrives prior to finding employment that offers health insurance? My employer offers health insurance both for myself and for my family, but annual enrollment is now. Should I go ahead and add her and pay for her health insurance even though she may not arrive til mid-late 2023?

[Mike E 11,726]

1 minute ago, tofulollipop said:

So we're waiting on my wife's visa interview to be scheduled still for her CR-1 visa before she can come to the US. However, how does health insurance work once she arrives prior to finding employment that offers health insurance? My employer offers health insurance both for myself and for my family, but annual enrollment is now. Should I go ahead and add her and pay for her health insurance even though she may not arrive til mid-late 2023?

Arrival of spouse to the USA is a qualifying life event so you can wait until she arrives if you want. 

[tofulollipop 7]

Just now, Mike E said:

Arrival of spouse to the USA is a qualifying life event so you can wait until she arrives if you want. 

good to know, thanks for the info! Easy enough solution.

[Mike E 11,726]

2 minutes ago, tofulollipop said:

good to know, thanks for the info! Easy enough solution.

Source material 

https://www.healthcare.gov/coverage-outside-open-enrollment/special-enrollment-period/

[Chancy 6,233]

1 hour ago, tofulollipop said:

My employer offers health insurance both for myself and for my family, but annual enrollment is now.

 

Check with your employer HR what documents are required to prove that your wife can enroll based on qualifying life event (QLE) after the open enrollment period.  In my case, my spouse's employer HR required that I submit proof of losing insurance coverage, in addition to proof of my move into the state.  At first we argued that immigration is a QLE by itself, but HR said the company insurance plan has its own regulations about QLE and if we don't submit what they require, we should just get coverage through ACA marketplace 😠

 

[tofulollipop 7]

1 hour ago, Chancy said:

 

Check with your employer HR what documents are required to prove that your wife can enroll based on qualifying life event (QLE) after the open enrollment period.  In my case, my spouse's employer HR required that I submit proof of losing insurance coverage, in addition to proof of my move into the state.  At first we argued that immigration is a QLE by itself, but HR said the company insurance plan has its own regulations about QLE and if we don't submit what they require, we should just get coverage through ACA marketplace 😠

 

That's a good call, i'll give them a call tomorrow after work and see what's up just to make sure, thanks for the suggestion!

[Scott001 119]

Just a note that www.healthcare.gov says if "you" move to the US it may qualify as a qualifing life event. It doesn't say if your spouse. So like others have said best to check with your HR department. 

 

I added my wife before she moved here. It kind of sucked paying for insureance while she wasn't here but whatever, it is what it is.  Also, you don't need a SSN to add your spouse to your insureance. 

 

 

 

[Simplytex 387]

21 hours ago, Chancy said:

 

Check with your employer HR what documents are required to prove that your wife can enroll based on qualifying life event (QLE) after the open enrollment period.  In my case, my spouse's employer HR required that I submit proof of losing insurance coverage, in addition to proof of my move into the state.  At first we argued that immigration is a QLE by itself, but HR said the company insurance plan has its own regulations about QLE and if we don't submit what they require, we should just get coverage through ACA marketplace 😠

 

I will second what Chancy said. Check that policy with a fine-tooth comb. After I got married in May, the HR rep on the phone said "Yeah, when they move to the US that will be a QLE", so I said "Great to hear - but where is that written down?" We then spent about 20-30 min going through about every document on the HR/insurance sites, and while there were many mentions of what a QLE is, nowhere did it say immigration. I'm a little more of a cynic, so I'm not going to take an HR rep's verbal word and then get screwed later by a different rep who decides to 'play by the book.' 

 

So yeah, I'm probably spending more than I need to right now, but that's a risk I'm willing (or not willing?) to take about my wife having coverage if/when she arrives. I was probably optimistic in my timeline/her arriving before my next enrollment period, but at the same time she might arrive a month or two after and then I'd be screwed if all the 'worst case' situations came true. 

[Lil bear 3,842]

For all ACA complying policies 

 

https://www.healthcare.gov/coverage-outside-open-enrollment/special-enrollment-period/

 

moving to the US. 
 

60 day window opens the day she immigrates 

[Mike E 11,726]

It’s a HIPAA requirement that any employee that loses coverage get allowed to enroll outside open enrollment and furthermore, if the plan offers coverage to dependents during open enrollment then it has to allow dependents to enroll outside open enrollment. 
 

I get it: some employers don’t like to comply with the law and some employees are afraid their employers won’t comply with the law.
 

This fear sometimes has  a good basis.  We see it also with  employers that insist dependents and employees  have to have an SSN to enroll, employers that demand to know the specific type of work authorization before they render and offer, and employers that reject valid I-9 documents or illegally require re-verification  of I-9. 
 

Over and out. 

[tofulollipop 7]

Just called HR, unfortunately they say immigration is not a qualifying life event. They say a QLE would be if she already has coverage and then loses it, as some of you have mentioned, but I have no idea how that would work since she is covered by a non-US healthcare system

[Chancy 6,233]

11 hours ago, tofulollipop said:

Just called HR, unfortunately they say immigration is not a qualifying life event. They say a QLE would be if she already has coverage and then loses it, as some of you have mentioned, but I have no idea how that would work since she is covered by a non-US healthcare system

 

The regulations for my spouse's employer health plan stated that losing coverage sponsored by a foreign institution was acceptable as a QLE.  We were able to submit documents showing that I would lose insurance coverage provided in my home country when I moved to the US, and HR was fine with that.  As @Simplytex said, it really helped that we went through the plan regulations and found that clause about foreign institutions.  We referred to that specific clause when we presented our case and the supporting documents to HR, so they had no reason to deny us.