I'm Pregnant, so what do I do now?

[Amy-Rose 0]

I'm getting married tomorrow, and as the subject suggests, I'm pregnant (6 weeks). Do I qualify for medicaid? I know I can apply for food stamps, but not welfare. What about medicaid? I am going to be going to the doctors for the I693 form, so I guess when they do the checkup, they will take a blood test and everything. Is there any insurance I can apply for, so I can give birth down here? If not, should I travel (with permission) to Canada a month before the baby is due and wait till it's born?

Thanks everyone. I want to make the best out of this situation!

[Inky 1,110]

Insurance generally requires an SSN and green card. Its free in canada. Its VERY expencive in america even with insurance.

If you go have the baby in canada you will need to apply for a CRBA at the embassy and get a US passport for the baby to return back to the USA. If you leave then you will have to file for a spousal visa. You cannot leave come back and then AOS. That is immigration fraud.

For the medical they do take blood to test. They take an X-ray or TB test ( in canada they just do an X-ray to test for TB ) they also do a regular exam(check reflex and lymph nodes, eyes,ears etc), and ask some questions relating to drugs etc. Make sure to tell them you are pregnant so they can adjust the medical acordingly.

[JoyDee 21]

I'm getting married tomorrow, and as the subject suggests, I'm pregnant (6 weeks). Do I qualify for medicaid? I know I can apply for food stamps, but not welfare. What about medicaid? I am going to be going to the doctors for the I693 form, so I guess when they do the checkup, they will take a blood test and everything. Is there any insurance I can apply for, so I can give birth down here? If not, should I travel (with permission) to Canada a month before the baby is due and wait till it's born?

Thanks everyone. I want to make the best out of this situation!

I'm not 100 percent sure on this, but Medicaid is generally run by each state, not the federal govt. What state do you live in? Some states have much better programs for women and children than others. Of course, each state will have different reqs for who qualifies as well. If you are in the US, you can ask at the doctor's office or hospital about these programs. they generally have case workers there to deal with insurance and lack of insurance issues.

[villaspurs 65]

Hi Amy-Rose,

Did you guys find a co-sponsor? I seem to remember that was a challenge before... Hopefully someone agreed!

I wanted to pipe in as someone who had a baby nine months ago and is now five months pregnant again. Pregnancy and having babies in the U.S. are very, very expensive. Depending on the state you are in, it can be quite difficult to get any sort of governmental assistance even if you are a citizen, which means you will be delaying prenatal care. I have excellent insurance and my last baby cost $2000 out of pocket (just for medical expenses--I don't even want to think about everything else!) and this one will be even more. I really encourage you to think about staying in Canada during this process, where you can get high quality health care without having to worry about the expense. Your baby has to be the priority now, so even if that means your husband and you separating until the birth at least you will have the resources you need to take care of yourself and your little one.

If you husband-to-be doesn't have enough money to sponsor you and is still a student, please think very carefully about what these costs are actually going to be. Talk to your local Medicaid/WIC office and see what you will qualify for. Compare this to your options in Canada.

Finally, think about what you are asking on here--you are going to move here and immediately become a public charge. You are asking all of us to pay for you to have your baby because you want to be with your husband during pregnancy. That seems awfully screwy to me. Harsh? Maybe. But when states are denying medical coverage to children who need surgery because they can't afford it anymore, it's a little frustrating (well, very frustrating) to have someone who has access to free medical care in her home country talk about immigrating here with full knowledge that she's going to take from the state because her husband and her can't afford to have the baby. You HAVE other options. Take them. [/rant]

[JoannaV 174]

I don't know what your particular situation is, but it is possible that you will no longer be eligible for state healthcare in Canada. (eg see http://www.canuckabroad.com/forums/non-resident-can-i-still-use-health-care-services-vt979.html) Then again, you might manage that fine.

Assuming you are on a fiancee visa and will be applying for AOS, if you apply for AOS asap then you should have AP or your green card by the time you are near the end of your pregnancy. So travelling outside of Canada might not be a problem.

If you don't have AP/green card by then then you won't want to leave. Paying for a midwife assisted home birth should be cheaper than travelling to Canada and then paying for immigration stuff all over again.

In general, you won't be eligible for Medicaid until you have lived here for 5 years. However, some states have provided coverage to newer immigrants, plus some states provide prenatal care regardless of immigration status. (After all, the baby is not an immigrant.)

So the big question is, what state are you from?

[Inky 1,110]

Assuming you are on a fiancee visa

she is AOS from a visitor and will likely have an interview ontop of the waiting.

[Amy-Rose 0]

Thanks everyone for your help! I just heard about medicaid and thought I'd ask, I didn't know it was from tax payers money, sorry! It is my fault (and to-be husband's), and the US shouldn't have to be responsible for helping. That being said, I'm in Virginia right now, and I guess I'll talk to the hospital and see what my options are. Even if I have to go back to Canada, as long as the baby's safe, then that's all that matters. I guess I'd apply for a CR1 or K3, whichever it's called now. Only problem is that I don't have a place to live there, but I think I can find somewhere to go!

And yes, I did find a co-sponsor! We went to the immigration office in DC and they told us how they don't really ever act on co-sponsors unless I apply for welfare. So, his mother decided to sign as our Christmas Present.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday!

[Inky 1,110]

Thanks everyone for your help! I just heard about medicaid and thought I'd ask, I didn't know it was from tax payers money, sorry! It is my fault (and to-be husband's), and the US shouldn't have to be responsible for helping. That being said, I'm in Virginia right now, and I guess I'll talk to the hospital and see what my options are. Even if I have to go back to Canada, as long as the baby's safe, then that's all that matters. I guess I'd apply for a CR1 or K3, whichever it's called now. Only problem is that I don't have a place to live there, but I think I can find somewhere to go!

And yes, I did find a co-sponsor! We went to the immigration office in DC and they told us how they don't really ever act on co-sponsors unless I apply for welfare. So, his mother decided to sign as our Christmas Present.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday!

If you go back to canada to have the baby, get married before you leave and have him apply for a CR-1. You would get your greencard a few weeks after you entered instead of having to apply for it and wait months to get it. Also K-3 is no longer being processed by the NVC.

- Also also montreal is the only embassy that does spousal visas. You would be looking at almost a year to get your CR-1 visa, but you can still travel and visit your husband in the US ( as long as the baby has a US passport from you guys doing a CRBA in canada ).

[SisJ 13]

If you go back to canada to have the baby, get married before you leave and have him apply for a CR-1. You would get your greencard a few weeks after you entered instead of having to apply for it and wait months to get it. Also K-3 is no longer being processed by the NVC.

- Also also montreal is the only embassy that does spousal visas. You would be looking at almost a year to get your CR-1 visa, but you can still travel and visit your husband in the US ( as long as the baby has a US passport from you guys doing a CRBA in canada ).

What Inky suggests seems to be a good option. I'm not sure if this is true, but if you can have the baby in Canada for free, like someone mentioned above since you're a citizen there, why not do that? you can always file the CR-1 and still come visit your husband while it's being processed. i know it would mean being apart from your husband for a while, but at this point baby comes first. Hope you find something that works for you.

[rlogan 2,036]

Thanks everyone for your help! I just heard about medicaid and thought I'd ask, I didn't know it was from tax payers money, sorry! It is my fault (and to-be husband's), and the US shouldn't have to be responsible for helping. That being said, I'm in Virginia right now, and I guess I'll talk to the hospital and see what my options are. Even if I have to go back to Canada, as long as the baby's safe, then that's all that matters. I guess I'd apply for a CR1 or K3, whichever it's called now. Only problem is that I don't have a place to live there, but I think I can find somewhere to go!

And yes, I did find a co-sponsor! We went to the immigration office in DC and they told us how they don't really ever act on co-sponsors unless I apply for welfare. So, his mother decided to sign as our Christmas Present.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday!

I don't know Virginia. Up here if the baby is born in the US then it is a citizen and the State pays for things because of the baby's citizenship and family income regardless of the mother's status. We earn to much to qualify but it is a surprisingly high level of income they will still pay benefits for, even if you have insurance covering most of it!

I wasn't sure what you meant by qualifying for food stamps but not qualifying for welfare. This could just be a terminology thing. But foodstamps are paid for by the taxpayer too, whether one calls it "welfare" or not.

One thing to consider is doing a midwife if you want to avoid the extreme hospital expense. Often they are a block or two away from the hospital so if there are any complications you can zip right over. They also commonly have sliding scales for fees.

Naturally, there will be some who foam at the mouth for even suggesting a midwife. Millions do it, and it is certainly your right to consider it if a hospital is going to bankrupt you. Bankruptcy or huge debts are not a healthy environment for an infant.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

One other consideration - it isn't being a 'citizen' of Canada that is important to qualify for health care coverage - it is being a 'resident'. If you are no longer a resident and have been out of the Province for a specified period of time or are out of the Province for a total number of days within a one year period, then you are no longer covered under that Provincial plan. Depending on what Province you live in, you may also have a 90 day 'waiting' period to re-establish residency in the Province before you are eligible once again to obtain Provincial health coverage (this is definitely true for OHIP in Ontario). http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/ .

So, you do need to do some long range planning, and if you decide to return to Canada to wait out the pregnancy and birth, move sooner rather than later, as you will still have to pay out of pocket until you re-establish residency and pass the qualifying time. You will want to investigate the relevant Provincial Health plan if you are returning to somewhere other than Ontario to find out their requirements.

Btw - congratulations on the pregnancy and the marriage .

_______________________________________________

As this is not a question specific to the AOS process I am moving this topic to the General Immigration Forum.

[reeses16 8]

You're only 6 weeks pregnant, so you can use this time to your advantage. No need to make a decision immediately.

In my work, I spend a lot of time in OB-GYN clinics working with pregnant women. The particular office I work with charges just under $5000 for prenatal care visits, delivery, and 2-3 post delivery visits. I know price varies by office (greatly!), so you could call around to different practices (and hospitals) to get estimates of their prices. Also, you're not due for almost another 8 months. Plenty of time for you or hubby to get health insurance (via a new job or student status). Also, if you discuss it early with your doctor, I'm sure you can arrange a payment plan. Also, I don't know if you would consider it tacky, but for the baby shower/gifts etc. you can request cash. I'm sure family and friends would be understanding of the situation.

Really go through the numbers. Is it worth going back to Canada? My guess is that you might save $1000-$2000 dollars after you account for travel( for you and hubby...my guess is he will at least come up for the birth), spending money, etc.And depending on how things work out immigration wise, you might spend your savings filling a new CR1 petition. Plus all the stress and additional time away from your hubby.

Best of luck in whatever you decide. Congratulations on the wedding and the baby! : )

Edited December 28, 2010 by reeses16

[tbaygrrl 2]

Just wanted to remind you too, that when you and your hubby search for health insurace coverage in the States, you must tell that that you had provincial health care coverage in Canada. This will count as previous coverage. Private insurance companies in the US can still deny coverage to a pregnant woman as she had a "pre-existing" condition until 2014 (this is when they have to accept maternity care due to the new health care bill), they may attempt to tell you that you were not previously covered by an American insurance company and try and deny you..... push back if they say this. Your CND OHIP counts and it is illegal for them to deny you, having you were covered in Canada. Let me know if you want more info on this and I can post it.

Also,

when you visit the hospital, ask them what the sliding price list is for a low income family, hospitals have several prices for a single procedure ... AND / OR... ask if they have any pre/post natal care plans for low income families and call around to different Women's health care clinics to price compare (they will ususally have a package plan for a pregnancy)

The returning to Canada route is very viable too. Follow your gut on this. From experience I spent the first 7 months of my pregnancy in Canada and only saw my fiance 3x, and am pregnant again and husband has been deployed for the whole pregnancy and won't be back till baby arrives. It can be tough, but you can also be amazed about how much strength you can have to get through it without him physically next to you. 7-12 months is a drop in the bucket compared to how many years you will have together. I would personally suggest blocking out all the other voices and mind clutter that is constantly in your head, and INSTEAD.... take the route that will give your baby the best pre and post natal care. Now regarding those suggesting a midwife for a home delivery, well that is way down the rd and is not for every woman. I had a midwife but delivered at the hospital. If I was home, I would have lost the baby and possible myself too. My 2nd is also breeched and I will deliver at the hospital again. Home birth is a tad cheaper, but as your pregnancy progresses things can change, your birth plan must be fluid because it will change as every birth is different. Because of this, definatly go where your little bundle will be best cared for...before and after birth, that should be the only factor guiding your decision..... In my opinion :-)

All the best and hope this helped

Edited December 28, 2010 by tbaygrrl

[waitwaitwait 3]

Congratulations!

[Sayha or bust. 71]

i haven't done much research wouldn't Medicaid or Title 19 fall under the definition of a public charge? Please in form me, I have private insurance for my Fiancée but would be interested if would be other programs made available to us that wouldn't fall into that category.