Barbitana

Hi all,
Could someone please recommend an affordable health insurance vendor/plan to cover maternity expenses?

Thanks so much

Bob

There aren't any.

But affordable depends on what your able to budget.

Also if your already pregnant it might be to late as a pre-existing.

Giantaxe

... but not too late for Medicaid in many states if her income is lower enough.

Bob

Have to be pretty poor to get that though...and depending on status in the US, if there's a financial sponsor, they might have to pick up the tab...

penguinsix

We'd need a bit more information. Are you pregnant now? Are you employed? Is there some coverage from the employer? Are you looking to just buy a 'one off' plan for the purposes of the pregnancy? What is your immigration status?

If you aren't pregnant--don't get pregnant until you have insurance. Understand this might be an after the fact kind of thing but just in case.

Pregnancy is not a pre-existing condition if you are joining a group health plan, so if you are starting a new job and join their group health insurance, then you are going to be covered, more or less. But if you are looking to buy a policy on your own, you're going to have a difficult time. It's just a business decision on their part:

At a minimum, your delivery, which is pretty much a certainty within the next 9 months, is going to cost the insurance company about $10,000-$15,000 if no complications, and as much as $250,000 if things get weird. Now contrast that, as a businessman, with the promise from you that you will pay say $300-$500 a month for the next 9 months (and then probably cancel after the baby is born).

So the insurance company is looking at $4,500 income (guaranteed) vs. $10,000 to $15,000 to $250,000 in expenses.

There aren't many companies in business today that will take you up on that offer.

Your best bet is to get some group coverage from some employer. If that is not available, you can contact the state to see what services they offer pregnant women (many do offer prenatal care regardless of your immigration status). Some even offer care for kids as well if you meet certain income guidelines.

Here is another thread you might want to see:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=637417

This is a chart of services available to immigrants.

Bob

Problem is, because it's not pre-existing on a group rate, you do find a lot of companies not offering insurance until you've been there for 3/6/9/12 months or whatever period they set, partly to reduce their cost of insurance.

In the mean time, simple prenatal scan can be $700 and a tour of the hospital $100 for instance.

Barbitana

Thanks folks!
A lot of information! please accpet my apologies for not providing enough info.

- We're on an E-3 work visa
- I cant get pregnant because I'm a male
- She's not pregnant yet we're just planning now

Thanks a lot

penguinsix

What is your current insurance situation? If you have a plan from your employer is your wife listed as a dependent?

Assuming you have no coverage whatsoever (which is, quite frankly, incredibly dangerous) and that your employer does not offer coverage, you will need to go out to the private market and purchase a plan. You might want to look at the wiki we have on the subject:

http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Health_Insurance

There is a good website where you can compare and shop around for different plans.

http://www.ehealthinsurance.com/

That's a good place to start. Fill in the questions and you'll get a couple of quotes based on your particulars and with various.

As others mentioned, sometimes you'll get a 3-6-12 month 'ban' on certain coverage, as you are coming into the system without any history. Once you get into a situation in the US where you have no coverage for a certain period of time, the insurance companies love to throw on waiting periods to make sure there isn't some pre-existing condition they didn't know about when they sold you the plan (i.e. you have cancer, you then know you have cancer, and then you sign up for a plan saying "I'm fine". They don't like that).

The thing about health care is that no two plans are alike, even those that are suppose to be the same. While Blue Cross might rock for me given the premiums I pay and the doctors who accept it in my community, my colleague who works in another city may hate them with a passion because he has a different deductible and his doctor of choice does not accept BC. There are so many flavors of the same thing that it's really hard for anyone to say "this is the best plan for you" given your personal health history, financial resources, geographic location and other factors.

Rete

Where in Nevada are you? My daughter lived in Las Vegas when she was pregnant with her first child. They didn't have health insurance. They made arrangements to pay cash for the doctor and at the hospital. There was a discount from both. If memory serves me correctly, the hospital was $3,500 and the doctor was another $1500.

You can try to make the very same arrangements with your doctor and your hospital or look for a midwife if Nevada has them and have a home birth.