Best options for health insurance?

[bigboss1984 8]

Hey all,

So I just wanted to ask what my options are for health insurance? I plan on paying it myself as my company is UK based and won't provide health insurance, what's the status on it as far as my K1 visa is concerned? Are there any limitations on what I can take out until I adjust my status to permanent resident after marriage?

For instance, I see some plans like Patriot America Insurance that is intended for immigrants, however would I be able to purchase that for a year BEFORE I move to the United States and would it still be valid when I adjust my status?

[Boiler 45,536]

Patriot Insurance is akin to a not very good Travel Insurance, but better than nothing.

Most people seem to get added to their spouses cover on marriage.

[bigboss1984 8]

Patriot Insurance is akin to a not very good Travel Insurance, but better than nothing.

Most people seem to get added to their spouses cover on marriage.

Yeah - so I've heard.

What's the options pre marriage, just stuff like Patriot insurance?

Also if I wanted my own insurance after marriage (cause my fiance is still in college and doesn't have a job that provides insurance so I'm fairly sure she's covered by her parents) what are my options?

[Boiler 45,536]

Pre marriage that would be it or buy something more regular privately, then there is the Exchange if you think you will get credits.

Uni's usually have schemes which you can add your spouse to.

[yuna628 9,676]

Hey all,

So I just wanted to ask what my options are for health insurance? I plan on paying it myself as my company is UK based and won't provide health insurance, what's the status on it as far as my K1 visa is concerned? Are there any limitations on what I can take out until I adjust my status to permanent resident after marriage?

For instance, I see some plans like Patriot America Insurance that is intended for immigrants, however would I be able to purchase that for a year BEFORE I move to the United States and would it still be valid when I adjust my status?

Hi there,

All persons residing in the USA must have health insurance or pay a penalty in tax. That doesn't mean you *have* to have insurance if you feel taking risks is worth it. There are plenty of persons that still have no health insurance. The cost of the penalty is actually cheaper than paying a years worth of premiums. At any rate, most persons are going to want or need some sort of health insurance, thankfully immigrants are not excluded from coverage.

So here are your options:

1) Obtain health insurance from the ACA federal exchange (Obamacare) or from your state exchange if you have one. If the state has one, you'll need to go through them first. Open enrollment is over, however due to marriage or immigration status you will qualify under 'special enrollment'. However, you'll need to file for Adjustment of Status as one of the proofs needed under the requirements. You may also need to provide an SSN, so keep that in mind. You can obtain an SSN before marriage even. You can see the link in my signature for more information on the ACA. You can usually keep these insurances for as long as you like.

You'll find that most of the insurances offered here will still have a cost and in many cases will still have sticker shock as any other insurance will do. What insurance you pick all depends on what you're looking for in terms of benefits vs cost. Subsidies can be qualified for only in usually very specific situations. For the average person, you're going to have to pay a bit.

2) Buy a private health insurance plan either jointly or single. Find an insurance company in your state and purchase a plan you like. Most places have websites and certainly phone people. That's what I did for my husband. Yes, there was still sticker shock, but the price was comparable to our very sorry state exchange. Like the ACA (there really is little difference in the plans offered) you can also keep it for as long as needed.

3) Obtain health insurance once married through your spouse, if they have health insurance via work they should be able to add you to the plan. This sounds like it's not an option for you. And no they can't add you to uni insurance/or insurance they have via parents.

4) Wait a bit and obtain health insurance until you have filed Adjustment of Status and have received an EAD or green card and have found a job of your own that offers insurance plans.

And now a special note: Temporary insurances, insurances marketed toward immigrants, travel visitor health insurances, even those like the kind you mentioned are considered subpar and NOT FEDERALLY COMPLIANT. That means, that the government considers them not good enough/or even like you haven't got insurance in the first place. It also means that the penalty will still apply. There are also many issues that arise whether these insurances are even accepted by health providers, whether they actually work for coverage when you need them, and I'm dubious about the claims they offer, even if they should give mild peace of mind.

Remember: the shorter amount of time you go without health insurance, the smaller the penalty paid will be. And you can have a lapse in coverage for a short period before the penalty will kick in. AOS as soon as you can if you want to use Ocare.

Another special note: Not every person on the phone will know or understand what the federal law says regarding coverage for immigrants (yes even the Ocare people), so it may take a bunch of time and effort to find someone that knows what they are doing.

Edited April 13, 2016 by yuna628

[bigboss1984 8]

Hi there,

All persons residing in the USA must have health insurance or pay a penalty in tax. That doesn't mean you *have* to have insurance if you feel taking risks is worth it. There are plenty of persons that still have no health insurance. The cost of the penalty is actually cheaper than paying a years worth of premiums. At any rate, most persons are going to want or need some sort of health insurance, thankfully immigrants are not excluded from coverage.

So here are your options:

1) Obtain health insurance from the ACA federal exchange (Obamacare) or from your state exchange if you have one. If the state has one, you'll need to go through them first. Open enrollment is over, however due to marriage or immigration status you will qualify under 'special enrollment'. However, you'll need to file for Adjustment of Status as one of the proofs needed under the requirements. You may also need to provide an SSN, so keep that in mind. You can obtain an SSN before marriage even. You can see the link in my signature for more information on the ACA. You can usually keep these insurances for as long as you like.

You'll find that most of the insurances offered here will still have a cost and in many cases will still have sticker shock as any other insurance will do. What insurance you pick all depends on what you're looking for in terms of benefits vs cost. Subsidies can be qualified for only in usually very specific situations. For the average person, you're going to have to pay a bit.

2) Buy a private health insurance plan either jointly or single. Find an insurance company in your state and purchase a plan you like. Most places have websites and certainly phone people. That's what I did for my husband. Yes, there was still sticker shock, but the price was comparable to our very sorry state exchange. Like the ACA (there really is little difference in the plans offered) you can also keep it for as long as needed.

3) Obtain health insurance once married through your spouse, if they have health insurance via work they should be able to add you to the plan. This sounds like it's not an option for you. And no they can't add you to uni insurance/or insurance they have via parents.

4) Wait a bit and obtain health insurance until you have filed Adjustment of Status and have received an EAD or green card and have found a job of your own that offers insurance plans.

And now a special note: Temporary insurances, insurances marketed toward immigrants, travel visitor health insurances, even those like the kind you mentioned are considered subpar and NOT FEDERALLY COMPLIANT. That means, that the government considers them not good enough/or even like you haven't got insurance in the first place. It also means that the penalty will still apply. There are also many issues that arise whether these insurances are even accepted by health providers, whether they actually work for coverage when you need them, and I'm dubious about the claims they offer, even if they should give mild peace of mind.

Remember: the shorter amount of time you go without health insurance, the smaller the penalty paid will be. And you can have a lapse in coverage for a short period before the penalty will kick in. AOS as soon as you can if you want to use Ocare.

Another special note: Not every person on the phone will know or understand what the federal law says regarding coverage for immigrants (yes even the Ocare people), so it may take a bunch of time and effort to find someone that knows what they are doing.

Thanks for this, just a quick question regarding your second point - if I went down the route of obtaining health insurance on my own, would I be able to do that on a K1 visa or would I have to wait for adjustment of status? Also, could I purchase it before I landed in the US on a K1?

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Yuna knows all the answers about when you are eligible so she can answer that. I was just going to tell you how we picked a policy.

We used the obamacare marketplace to view companies offering in our state since it is a buffet of multiple insurers and policies. It gave me a starting place. Then I went directly to the company websites and found better, cheaper, and different offerings and eventually purchased directly from the insurer instead of through the marketplace.

I must say shopping for my husband's insurance each year is my most dreaded task ever. I hate it so much more than figuring out his immigration or Income tax with foreign income to report.. I get so frustrated that I shut down the computer over and over for weeks until the deadline is 24 hours away and I have to pick something. And I actually fully understand all the terms and what to look for. When you work for a company that offers insurance, the benefits department gurus pick a policy and tell you your price. Picking you own has so many decisions to make without the benefit of large company group pricing. Prepare for sticker shock.

Edited April 13, 2016 by Nich-Nick

[bigboss1984 8]

Yuna knows all the answers about when you are eligible so she can answer that. I was just going to tell you how we picked a policy.

We used the obamacare marketplace to view companies offering in our state since it is a buffet of multiple insurers and policies. It gave me a starting place. Then I went directly to the company websites and found better, cheaper, and different offerings and eventually purchased directly from the insurer instead of through the marketplace.

I must say shopping for my husband's insurance each year is my most dreaded task ever. I hate it so much more than figuring out his immigration or Income tax with foreign income to report.. I get so frustrated that I shut down the computer over and over for weeks until the deadline is 24 hours away and I have to pick something. And I actually fully understand all the terms and what to look for. When you work for a company that offers insurance, the benefits department gurus pick a policy and tell you your price. Picking you own has so many decisions to make without the benefit of large company group pricing. Prepare for sticker shock.

Thanks for the response - I have had a bit of a shop around and yeah, expensive times! I've resigned myself to this for a long time though, knowing that I'll be paying for health insurance out my own pocket

[yuna628 9,676]

Thanks for this, just a quick question regarding your second point - if I went down the route of obtaining health insurance on my own, would I be able to do that on a K1 visa or would I have to wait for adjustment of status? Also, could I purchase it before I landed in the US on a K1?

I am doubtful that you could do so before you landed in the US, I have perhaps heard of an instance of someone filing for a spousal visa managed to be added to a spouse's work insurance before their POE but otherwise.. unsure. This would be a question only the insurer could answer, but I suspect it's likely no. As for your first question, hard to say. I'd like to say you don't have to wait for adjustment, because my insurance company did not ask my husband's status or even an SSN to begin with. We had his NOA1, but this was never asked for. Had we used the exchange, the NOA1 etc would have been asked for along with other proof. Again this would be another question best asked to the insurer directly.

[bigboss1984 8]

I am doubtful that you could do so before you landed in the US, I have perhaps heard of an instance of someone filing for a spousal visa managed to be added to a spouse's work insurance before their POE but otherwise.. unsure. This would be a question only the insurer could answer, but I suspect it's likely no. As for your first question, hard to say. I'd like to say you don't have to wait for adjustment, because my insurance company did not ask my husband's status or even an SSN to begin with. We had his NOA1, but this was never asked for. Had we used the exchange, the NOA1 etc would have been asked for along with other proof. Again this would be another question best asked to the insurer directly.

Thanks for all your help!

[Boiler 45,536]

Insurance in the US is a State thing, so to buy it you would need to be resident first. Being added to an existing policy could be different.

[simonschus 58]

Hi all,

Am I right in thinking that the penalty doesn't apply if you are uninsured for a maximum of two months of a year, as per here? I believe it is affectionately called the "short coverage gap exemption".

I'll getting married two days after POE.

Simon.

Edited April 13, 2016 by simonschus

[yuna628 9,676]

Insurance in the US is a State thing, so to buy it you would need to be resident first. Being added to an existing policy could be different.

Nothing of the sort of any kind of residential proof was required by BCBS (though we certainly did have it they never asked). The form required that he list his place of birth/nationality and they had no issue there either. They did need proof of marriage iirc.

Simonschus: most likely you are correct. They give people a reasonable gap window to find some kind of coverage that works for them without penalty. Even if you went a month or two over that gap, the full fee doesn't apply, just an amount for whatever time period. Insurances are now giving a document at the end of the year as evidence that the person had coverage, just in case the IRS ever requests proof.

[Boiler 45,536]

Nothing of the sort of any kind of residential proof was required by BCBS (though we certainly did have it they never asked). The form required that he list his place of birth/nationality and they had no issue there either. They did need proof of marriage iirc.

Simonschus: most likely you are correct. They give people a reasonable gap window to find some kind of coverage that works for them without penalty. Even if you went a month or two over that gap, the full fee doesn't apply, just an amount for whatever time period. Insurances are now giving a document at the end of the year as evidence that the person had coverage, just in case the IRS ever requests proof.

All the one I have come across wanted to know your address.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

You get three months grace period exemption before the penalty. Insurance just one day in a month covers that month. What I found interesting was on the actual tax form, it just asked if you had health insurance all year. Tick yes and move on. Nothing to fill out or prove. Huh? If you say no, there's forms to fill out to seek various exemptions or assess your penalty. That's when you go private. If you are seeking tax credit to subsidize the cost of insurance because of low income, I think you may have more to fill out. I didn't look at that in detail.