K-1 Health Insurance

[geowrian 22,338]

2 hours ago, Magician50 said:

Thanks for the information. I will check on this. My next question though is it we found out it will cost about 700 dollars more a month to go on my fiancé's plan. Blue Cross Blue Shield is not cheap for a family plan (and they distinguish a wife as a family even if there are no children as you pay one set rate). There must be a cheaper option without putting us in the poorhouse. 

Yes it is, and it's still far cheaper than my plan (we switched from that to another provider recently). That rate is about the norm for a working aged individual. Some are cheaper, some are more expensive, but an extra $700/month isn't unusual.

 

The cost of no insurance can very, very quickly cost much more. Have you seen US hospital prices? A 4 night stay (med/surg - not ER or ICU or anything) for me came to $134,000, and I had 0 complications.

[Magician50 2]

5 hours ago, geowrian said:

Yes it is, and it's still far cheaper than my plan (we switched from that to another provider recently). That rate is about the norm for a working aged individual. Some are cheaper, some are more expensive, but an extra $700/month isn't unusual.

 

The cost of no insurance can very, very quickly cost much more. Have you seen US hospital prices? A 4 night stay (med/surg - not ER or ICU or anything) for me came to $134,000, and I had 0 complications.

Yes, I know. it is ridiculous. U.S. health care is run by a bunch of gangsters. The thing is that I don't even need doctors here for regular visits as I'll be returning to Italy often and have my doctors there. I'm just looking for some affordable option to cover those catastrophic situations and emergency room care. The research goes on.

[Jenny17655 284]

Www.healthcare.gov 

[Ash.1101 1,756]

Insurance here is awful for sure. When I had looked up the market place, it would have been 550-700$ for my husband, daughter and self, and they were only willing to give 99$ per month to lower the cost, even though I was the only one working in a family of three at the time and definitely didn't make much. This was for a bronze plan with no bells and whistles.

Luckily, now I have Blue Cross Blue Shield through the company my husband and I work for, it's about 220 a month for myself and my daughter and 140 a month for my husband. We have separate plans because it was cheaper that way. The company pays for the rest.

Edited September 11, 2019 by Ash.

[yuna628 9,744]

OP:

 

Your options are as follows: obtain health insurance by being added to your new spouse's plan.

sign up to a private plan via any insurer that offers in the state you reside.

sign up to federal or state exchange - in that case you will need to ensure you obtain your SSN before marriage, marry, file for AOS asap - because the government will need proof of status. Your AOS NOA1, EAD, or green card will be proofs you can offer - whichever you have first. You can sign up at open enrollment, but if it is out of open enrollment, newly married immigrants can qualify for special enrollment, provided they don't wait too long.

 

In all of these scenarios it is unlikely that you will find much at a pricepoint you will enjoy, however it is what it is. $700 could be a lot worse. BSBS is a solid insurance plan.

 

Travel insurance and insurance marketed towards new immigrants are subpar, do not cover pre-existing conditions, and are not federally compliant. They are mostly junk insurances that will not be money wisely spent.

 

Things are different and expensive in America, but it is better to have something than be slammed with thousands or hundreds of thousands in bills.

[Commish10 427]

My insurance will go from $68 per Bi monthly pay check to $653, bi monthly for spouse and her daughter. Talk about sticker shock. 

[payxibka 10,047]

1 minute ago, Commish10 said:

My insurance will go from $68 per Bi monthly pay check to $653, bi monthly for spouse and her daughter. Talk about sticker shock. 

Your employer must only subsidize the employee cost and not family cost

[Commish10 427]

Just now, payxibka said:

Your employer must only subsidize the employee cost and not family cost

Correct. That is only for medical. Dental/ Vision etc will bring to about $1,500, monthly. 

[Ontarkie 14,544]

~~Moved to Moving Here and Your New Life, from K1 P&P - As the topic is about health insurance.~~

[Ed&Midori1031 330]

17 hours ago, Magician50 said:

I was curious if anyone knows the best way to get health insurance while on the K-1 visa. I cannot get on my partner's plan until I have the green card, and of course cannot work until then. Perhaps there is a government program, or even a company that offers this at a reasonable cost. Thanks!

As soon as my wife and I were married, I added her and her son to my insurance plan, it was simple.  Not a requirement to have a green card first. 

[Highmystic 234]

17 hours ago, Magician50 said:

I was curious if anyone knows the best way to get health insurance while on the K-1 visa. I cannot get on my partner's plan until I have the green card, and of course cannot work until then. Perhaps there is a government program, or even a company that offers this at a reasonable cost. Thanks!

Shop around.  If you do not foresee any short term medical expense (meaning you are pretty healthy),  you can find something cheap.  I got a company who signed her up for like $137 a month until she can get  a better plan through her employer.

[AK_2014 113]

Be aware that if you do want to be added to your spouse's plan, it's usually necessary to do so within 30 days after the marriage ceremony. If you miss that window, then there's usually just a once-a-year opportunity (often a short period near the end of the calendar year, but check with the provider) to be able to add a spouse or other dependent for the following year.

[bj smith 0]

17 hours ago, yuna628 said:

There is no requirement to have a green card to obtain health insurance or be added to your spouse's plan. You can be added to their plan as soon as you marry.

 

My work said my husband has to have his ss number forst

[geowrian 22,338]

2 minutes ago, bj smith said:

My work said my husband has to have his ss number forst

They're wrong. It's a common mistake as SSN is normally a required field in the computer. It's not actually required....have them contact the insurance rep (or do so yourself).

[yuna628 9,744]

Just now, bj smith said:

My work said my husband has to have his ss number forst

There is no requirement BY LAW for you to have an SSN in able to purchase or to be added to insurance.

They can request it because they don't understand that law or they don't care. If for some reason your husband hasn't gotten his SSN (and it is usually important for a K1 to get one as soon as possible) you will have to argue and escalate it with HR.

Lots of people in America may demand your SSN. That doesn't mean they have the legal right to know it and you are certainly not barred from obtaining insurance for not having one yet.

 

That being said this is a very common issue, usually based in the ignorance of HR not understanding the law. That's why I suggest for a K1 to get their SSN as soon as possible, preferably before they marry.