Originally Posted by Bink

my wifes pregnancy was billed at $18k (before dicounts etc were applied).

Originally Posted by frambuesas

I am confused as to what this means!

Originally Posted by penguinsix

Our very normal birth three years ago was $16,000. The only optional extra was one day of TV service for $4.95 in the recovery room.

Originally Posted by GeoffM

I've heard stories of "normal" births costing thousands, with NICU/SCBU, Caesarian Sections etc, adding tens of thousands to a bill. For NICU stays, that could be thousands per day being racked up. Opting to be uninsured for pregnancy is not a wise move if you can afford the premiums!

Originally Posted by Bink

This was an induced birth, but other than that was completely normal, no special care other than that she was induced as she was late. It's scary how expensive it is.

On another note my brother-in-law is in Neuro ICU and has been for 3 weeks (car wreck left him paralyzed). That's going to be one hell of a bill (no insurance other than medicaid...) It was a real eye opener to me in many ways, but on the insurance front it just highlights that you simply cannot not have insurance here - you have to factor it in and get it somehow. I've been told his medical bill by the time he is out is going to be in the high hundreds of thousands - pushing $1m...

Sorry don't mean to issue a scare warning but insurance over here isn't a luxury, it's a necessity.

Originally Posted by Boiler

His getting treated and he will not be paying the bill?

Originally Posted by penguinsix

Hi,

We have a basic primer on health care insurance in the wiki here:

http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Health_Insurance

In the health insurance industry, there is something called a "pre-existing condition". For example, you can't go out and break your leg, then the next day go to the insurance company and say "I'd like insurance coverage please" and then the day after that show up at the hospital and say "treat this, and put the tab on my insurance company." (I know, a silly example, but to illustrate the point). Insurance companies don't want to pay for things that you did before you joined their policy.

Now, if you have had "credible coverage" within the last 60 odd days, then your pre-existing conditions won't be precluded from coverage. Say in the UK you were treated for high blood pressure. If you QUICKLY get a plan in the USA, your NHS coverage will be considered "credible" such that your US insurance agency will have to cover the pre-existing condition of high blood pressure.

If you wait too long, then you get in a rut where you have to wait as long as six months (or never) to get coverage for pre-existing conditions. This is all scheduled to change as part of the health care reform act, but a very major portion of this act is under constitutional review by the Supreme Court (i.e. does the government have the constitutional authority to order the citizens to purchase health care?). It's actually a very tricky question, constitutionally speaking, and the results of that argument will likely be studied in law school for decades. It's quite possible to make convincing arguments on both sides. Will be interesting.

Anyway, you will likely get a much better offer on insurance from your husband's plan, which is probably a "group" plan offered by the university vs. you going out an buying an individual plan from some broker.

As others have pointed out, paying about $250 a month for a 29-year-old in child bearing years is well, pretty cheap. If you are a smoker or have a history of cancer in your family, you'll pay much more. As you and your husband start to budget for the future, I could easily see $400 or more a month for insurance costs for the both of you. FWIW the actual cost of my insurance for a family of 4 was $1,500 a month last time I checked. I don't pay it so I'm not sure what it is now.

Originally Posted by Bob

Basically you don't want a break in insurance cover over 62 days.

The NHS is considered cover so you won't have a break.

When you get temporary cover, make sure it is considered creditable, so that you don't have a break in cover.

Originally Posted by Bink

This was an induced birth, but other than that was completely normal, no special care other than that she was induced as she was late. It's scary how expensive it is.

On another note my brother-in-law is in Neuro ICU and has been for 3 weeks (car wreck left him paralyzed). That's going to be one hell of a bill (no insurance other than medicaid...) It was a real eye opener to me in many ways, but on the insurance front it just highlights that you simply cannot not have insurance here - you have to factor it in and get it somehow. I've been told his medical bill by the time he is out is going to be in the high hundreds of thousands - pushing $1m...

Sorry don't mean to issue a scare warning but insurance over here isn't a luxury, it's a necessity.

Originally Posted by Bob

Last year, our 6 week premie, with 3 weeks in NICU, with a 90/10 insurance split left us with $10K of bills.

Originally Posted by GeoffM

Most of the individual plans I've been looking at lately have included a maternity option. I haven't tried seeing what it would do to a "quick quote" though, much less a formal written quote. But when I was looking previously (when the wife was pregnant) all the plans stated that starting a plan whilst pregnant was a pre-existing medical condition and wouldn't be covered.

Looking at some of the figures people have posted, me paying $600 for a family of four doesn't seem quite so bad now - though a reasonably high deductible! But I think I've gotten over the shock of health insurance and have just considered it as a fact of life; a necessary expense.

Originally Posted by Bink

This was an induced birth, but other than that was completely normal, no special care other than that she was induced as she was late. It's scary how expensive it is.

On another note my brother-in-law is in Neuro ICU and has been for 3 weeks (car wreck left him paralyzed). That's going to be one hell of a bill (no insurance other than medicaid...) It was a real eye opener to me in many ways, but on the insurance front it just highlights that you simply cannot not have insurance here - you have to factor it in and get it somehow. I've been told his medical bill by the time he is out is going to be in the high hundreds of thousands - pushing $1m...

Sorry don't mean to issue a scare warning but insurance over here isn't a luxury, it's a necessity.

Originally Posted by frambuesas

Thank you for the explanation. We have contacted the university to get a definite quote, but it would only cover me until May, and then he leaves university, so it seems a little pointless if I would have to start my own plan then anyway. I would rather have a rolling plan in place, as per Patriot America's immigrant health insurance plans. However, they don't cover pregnancy, so I will still need to research further, just in case.

Originally Posted by penguinsix

It's not pointless because a) the 60 day rule to keep coverage--any coverage, and b) many universities actually allow you to extend your coverage after you finish, so you might want to check with them and see if the policy can go out another six months or so. It's designed to help recent graduates who are looking for a job.