Medical insurance

[Pandora01 0]

I've been reading quite a few posts where I see that people have difficulty getting medical insurance or just plain don't have it when they move until they've adjusted status. Wouldn't getting an health insurance policy before moving (from Blue Cross, to name one) cover this?

I haven't looked into it yet but I'm starting to wonder about this and whether I'll have to go for a few months without any coverage. I'm in good health but one never knows what could happen and having to go without health insurance would really bother me big time.

[vanee 13]

My health insurance is through my husband's plan, which was effective the day we got married (although he had to fill out some forms and pay more, of course). For the few days between my arrival in the US and our wedding, I used US NetCare. That was last October, and my AOS is still pending.

I haven't heard of health care coverage depending on AOS, but there have been a variety of stories about health care coverage. I don't know what the situation would be for you.

[Reba 2]

Depends on your US spouse's current plan if you can get on it right away. Some insurance companies wont let you if you don't have a SSN.

Travel insurance like Blue Cross may not work because you're not just travelling as a tourist, you're actually staying indefinitely. There are insurance companies however in the US for new immigrants. Just Google "immigrant insurance in the US" and you should be able to find something. But first have your fiance check with their insurance company to find out if you can get insured immediately after marriage.

[Gypsyangel 11]

I couldn't get on my hubby's plan until I received my SSN and after that it still takes about 6 weeks to get insured. I got immigrant health insurance from Sevencorners.com. It's basically just emergency insurance and was around $200 for 2 months. I found it by googling and searching around on VJ. You can be insured from a date you select and print something off to prove you're insured and then they mail a card to your U.S. address. I don't know how good it is, but at least I have something.

[Emancipation 2]

The trick with Blue Cross Insurance is that if something serious happens they will ship you back to Canada. The policy assumes that you are covered under provincial medicare and that if such a need arises, they will just fly you back to Canada to get the care you need. When I asked my insurance agent about it -he confirmed that that was the assumption, so if you leave Canada permanently and in my case had K-1 so i couldn't just go back and forth -that doesn't work.

I also just googled immigrant inbound insurance, picked up a very cheap policy.

Remember to fill all your prescriptions before leaving Canada if possible - Blue Cross paid for a full years' worth of Birth Control before I left Canada - it was a life saver. My Dr. gave me a year's prescriptions of all my meds before I left Canada (which i then filled in CDN pharmacy) and said "it's worth a shot".. it worked like a charm!

Edited September 10, 2008 by Emancipation

[Pandora01 0]

Thanks everyone for your replies. Hadn't tought about the fact that an insurance bought in Canada would mean they might want to bring me back here for treatment. Sure don't want that. I'll look into the companies mentioned here and see what will suit me the best. I'll also ask my fiance to check his insurance plan.

What about insurance during the time I travel to be there? Would an insurance contracted in Canada be ok? The plan is for my darling to come pick me up with his truck and trailer. The trip would take somewhere between four to five days.

[Texanadian 10]

Really you can never go without insurance in the US. A broken arm is a $2500 bill. My wife went for a 1 day thyroid surgery. The bill was $32,000 before insurance reduced it down to $6,000. As somebody without insurance you wouldn't get the network discounts or reduced insurance deals that the insurance companies can get from hospitals. Your bill would be $32,000.

You could slip in the bathtub and need surgery on an ankle. Big bucks. Big big bucks.

I signed up with 7 Corners health care when I moved to the US. It was pretty good. Something like $80/month or something. They're specially for immigrants. Granted, it didn't cover a whole lot. But it did cover the big ones. Hospital stays, surgery, etc.

[BH45 0]

When I read this post it reminded me to ask my hubby about getting me on his insurance. He went on Tuesday and spoke to HR only to find out that we may have to wait until November because he should have added me within 30 days of our marriage. The woman he spoke to suggested he go back yesterday and talk to the manager of the insurance policy. So he did. He came home last night and informed me that she has added me to his insurance. So I'm now covered under his policy. I just need him to bring home the information so I know what is covered, etc.

[thetreble 19]

Some insurance companies, as previously discussed, only allow you to make changes to the plan in certain months or at certain times of the year. I know I can only make changes to my plan once a year, every october 1st.

Also, as texanadian stated, PLEASE get some kind of insurance. If somethings happens, god forbid, you could be in the hole for more than you know. I know a few people who did not have insurance and were severely hurt. They basically had to give up their life to the insurance company and became almost homeless.

[Flames9_RN 358]

We have insurance--but one gets to see the ttl bill. For my wifes sprained ankle--which we sat in emergency for like 3 hrs, and only had a few minutes with a PA, and xrays,the bill was over $1500.00 99% of that time was just sitting. Medical stuff ain't cheap. The exact same pregnancy test u buy for $15 at ur drug store, was like $60 there,lol

[badspellor 0]

Got medical insurance through work. Had a grace period after the "life changing event" of marriage. Even without an ITIN or an SSN, they just had us put in all 0's and the system took it. Otherwise you have to wait until the open enrolment period once a year to change anything. That's the way it worked for our health plan.

[Pandora01 0]

Thanks for the additional information. I asked my fiance to check with his insurance company and I'm waiting to hear about it. In the meantime though, I still don't know what to do for the time I'll be traveling up until we get married (that's if he can then add me on his plan). I don't have any insurance plan at work (small company) so I'm currently covered only by the provincial plan (Quebec). Any ideas/suggestions on what kind of insurance I should get for the trip and begining of stay in the States, until I can get either on my fiance's plan or get something from one of those companies specializing in covering immigrants?

[vanee 13]

Check out US NetCare. IIRC I asked them if their plan would be effective the day I arrived in the US, for example, if I had appendicitis at a US airport between flights, and they said yes. (But I suggest calling them to be sure.) I booked insurance for the day I left Canada up to and including the day we got married.

I didn't have to use the insurance, but I felt a lot better having it. Others have named other insurance companies in this thread that you could look at too.

[vanee 13]

Check out US NetCare. IIRC I asked them if their plan would be effective the day I arrived in the US, for example, if I had appendicitis at a US airport between flights, and they said yes. (But I suggest calling them to be sure.) I booked insurance for the day I left Canada up to and including the day we got married.

Correction: the company I used was Inbound USA. I had an email in my in-box from the above company, but that was them telling me that their minimum coverage is for 3 months. Inbound USA's minimum coverage period is 5 days, which is exactly what I wanted.

I'll echo the need for health insurance. I broke my wrist last January when I slipped on ice, and even with insurance, we paid close to $200 for the hospital visit, doctor appointments, and a brace. One little accident can end up costing thousands without insurance.

[Pandora01 0]

Thanks vanee, I'll check them out.