If you’re expecting a baby, obtaining health insurance needs to be on the top of your to-do list. Medical care is expensive, and without newborn insurance, you can expect thousands of dollars in bills. You need to take steps to ensure your newborn is covered.
Timelines and Deadlines to Consider
You have 30 days to obtain newborn insurance coverage, and the clock starts ticking on the day the baby is born. As long as you secure newborn insurance within the first 30 days, the policy will cover the medical expenses starting the day the child was born. Also, the child cannot be denied coverage due to preexisting medical conditions.
Actions Parents Need to Take – How to Apply for Health Insurance
Before the end of 30 days, you must contact your insurer to obtain newborn coverage. If you receive coverage through work, talk to the plan’s director at your company. You can also contact your health insurance company directly to add the coverage or use the state health insurance exchange to make changes. If you have an individual plan, you will need to get a family plan to obtain newborn insurance. Otherwise, you can add newborn coverage to your existing family plan. You also have the option of getting a standalone policy for your newborn.
If you are unsure how to proceed with your coverage, you can speak to a licensed insurance agent. Whether you are interested in adding the baby to the father’s insurance, the mother’s insurance, or getting a standalone policy, the agent can walk you through the process.
Possible Difficulties Parents Could Encounter
There are some difficulties that parents could encounter when obtaining newborn insurance. First, some parents don’t have health insurance, and that makes it impossible to add their newborn to an existing plan. Fortunately, there are child-only plans that parents can consider.
Second, it can be expensive to add newborn insurance to some family plans. In this case, parents might save money by choosing a child-only health insurance plan.
The main obstacle parents faced is the timeline, though. Far too many parents don’t enroll their children until the 30-day period is over, and then they are left with tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills. Parents can avoid this problem by shopping for coverage early, so they will be ready to purchase it as soon as the baby is born.
Maternity Coverage
If you’re about to have a baby, you also need to know how to apply for health insurance for an unborn baby. This is typically referred to as maternity coverage, and it covers prenatal and postnatal doctor visits, lab studies, newborn baby care, and more. Maternity coverage is a mandatory benefit under the Affordable Care Act, so you are covered if you get pregnant.
But can the father’s insurance cover pregnancy? If the mother is on the father’s policy, it will cover the pregnancy. Otherwise, it will not, but the father can get newborn insurance to cover the baby after he or she is born.
Get a Quote for Newborn Insurance
Having a baby is one of the most exciting life events you can have. However, planning is needed to ensure you aren’t stuck with expensive bills. Contact Freeway Insurance for a quote on newborn insurance. Then you can get an affordable policy that will cover your newborn’s needs, starting on the day of the birth.
