Health Insurance from POE to AOS

[Lights 56]

I'll be doing my POE next week (whoa, did I just say that?!) and I'm interested to know what others have done during the time of POE to getting married and being added on their spouses health insurance. My fiance has spoke to his HR department and they are well aware that he will be adding me as soon as we're legally married. We will be married the day after my POE but will likely have to wait a few days to a week to get our marriage certificate. During that week or two, should I be getting travel insurance? Just in case?

[kc247 22]

It's up to you. I didn't get health insurance until about a week ago after fighting with the insurance companies since I came here! It shouldn't be like that for you though since you will just be adding onto your spouses. I believe you can get travel insurance that will cover you if it is only for that short amount of time if it makes you feel better about it & just to be safe! I didn't bother with it though.

[Krikit 1,163]

My husband's insurance added me the moment I entered on the K-1.

[pro_star 52]

I think it depends on your hubby (or hubby to be's) insurance. Something to get him to look into. (Or wife/her)

[Udella&Wiz 325]

My daughter and I were added as a result of our marriage. Company health insurance usually requires a qualifying life event such as a marriage, birth etc....unless they are doing Open Enrollment.

I entered and we married 2 weeks later; I chose not to get insurance between my POE and our wedding date....I figured we were healthy and if anything came up we'd spring the couple hundred for an uninsured Dr appt during those 2 weeks. Yes....I could have broken a leg but...I didn't!

If I were you, I probably wouldn't. Fill any prescriptions you need before you leave Canada so you have a 2-3 month supply (birth control. BP meds, etc...) so you can be comfortable as you get situated and first go to a family Dr. I think I stockedpiled about 4-6 months supply because I'm weird like that...but We were insured in 2 1/2 weeks and met our new family Dr less than a month after moving.

[VeeNDee 44]

I arrived on a K-1 and got married just under a month after POE. I got short term health insurance recommended by some people on VJ. I was under the impression travel insurance was invalid if you wanted to use it, since you weren't traveling/visiting but moving. Most likely you'd be okay without it but there's always a chance something could happen and things down here surely aren't cheap. It's all on how comfortable you are. I'm not sure what the insurance was called- I ended up having to mention it to my husband's insurance as proof of prior coverage for pre existing conditions or some dumb thing but I think that's changed as of 2014. It's probably somewhere in my email now as a record.

[NikLR 13,227]

Travel insurance for a short period of time is pretty cheap, however, as you're immigrating, I don't think you qualify to use it. Simply get added to his and be careful in the meantime.

[Lights 56]

Thanks, Everyone! I will definitely ask my hubby-to-be if just entering on a K1 can get me added, or if we will have to wait until our marriage is official with certificate in hand.

I am a but of a worry-wart, so I tend to like insurance. If we can get added as soon as we have the marriage certificate, it would only be a week or so. But, I'm concerned of insurance companies and if they take long or find issues, etc and it becomes this one month+ wait to be added on his insurance.

[Rob & Monika 87]

I think your main requirement for insurance will be a SSN, so make sure you get that as soon as you can.

[Lights 56]

Thanks everyone for your insight. I thought I write an update for this, in case it's helpful for someone else.

We did our insurance papers the week after I arrived and were married. It was really easy through his employers. I still haven't gotten my SSN yet, but will do so next week. My husbands employers and their insurance company has an SSN exception form we were able to fill out (coverage under spousal), so that was super easy. I can give them my SSN once I receive it. When we filed for insurance, I was backdated to the day we were married. So even if I got travel insurance for that week or two, the insurance itself would've covered anything that happened during that period.

It was pretty simple and straight forward and one less thing to worry about now! GL everyone!