If she is starting the job this late in the year, will the small amount of time on the job this year result in income smaller than the Medicaid limit for your state?
As to why employers require a waiting period, it’s likely to avoid a lot of paperwork shuffling for people who quit or are fired during a probationary period. Not an issue for most professionals, but the same rules would apply to classes of workers with higher turnover, as well.
How long does it take to apply for and qualify for Medicaid in those expansion states. I don’t think that’s exactly an overnight process,
To answer some of the kind suggestions:
She’s been working a well-paying job for three months and also worked part-time while in school, so she wouldn’t qualify for Medicaid based on her 2018 income. The plan she is on is solely for students and doesn’t offer any coverage beyond the 90-day continuation period that runs out in a few days. She would have to apply for an individual policy from the company that supplies that coverage, which would not offer any advantage over any other insurer, and in any case coverage under a new policy would not kick in until 12/1 anyway. I even checked with the broker who handles our business insurance, and he had no better answer.
I purchased very flexible gap coverage for her some years ago in another state and just assumed that it could be done in New York, so I didn’t harass her about any of this. That was dumb. In any case, she signed up for three days of catastrophic coverage for $200.
Not for a newly graduated 27 year old. Being diagnosed with a major illness in 15 days is highly unlikely. In an accident situation, she may be able to recover against the other party. In the event she can’t recover, assuming she has no assets to protect, she can likely get much of the costs waived and if necessary discharged in bankruptcy.
Heck, if the OP is really concerned, just buy a short term gap policy from another state. You’ll need to travel if something happens but at least you’ll be covered.
This is a pretty common problem, unfortunately. A result of our patchwork-crazy heavily-dependent-on-employment health insurance system. I’m not sure you can buy a gap policy in another state if you are not a resident of that state.
Unlikely, but lightning does strike. D2 was diagnosed with breast cancer after discovering a lump in her breast while doing a self-exam in the shower at age 24. From discovery of the lump to cancer diagnosis took 10 days.
And she wasn’t the only who this happened to–one of her sorority sisters also got a breast cancer diagnosis shortly after she graduated from college at age 22 and before she was supposed to start her new job 2 weeks post-graduation.
BTW, neither girl had any family history of breast cancer and neither carried BRCA genes.
Actually in my state the process is pretty quick. I think it took D2 about 6 weeks to get approved. Most of that time was waiting for an in-person appointment with her caseworker. Once she had initial approval, annual re-enrollment merely required sending in a signed statement of her finances.
It’s unlikely because when you don’t have health insurance, you don’t go to the doctor when you notice a lump, or have a cough, or pretty much anything that won’t very obviously result in death or disfigurement if put off. You wait 15 days until you have insurance.
Hugs. But this is what I would do… I would wait for a week or two until my new plan kicks in. Chances are the ultrasound would not be available a month out anyway.
I forgot to mention that D1 developed acute appendicitis while uninsured. She went from perfectly fine to a ruptured appendix in under 24 hours. And a ruptured appendix is a life threatening condition.
Although the hospital waived most of her costs since she was a med student at said hospital, she was still paying off medical bills 3 years later.
This six weeks for Medicaid approval is pretty quick…but this kid needs coverage now. IIRC. Coverage ended mid month.
So…folks hoping to use Medicaid in expansion states…need to plan ahead.
If, G-d forbid, your D was involved in a car accident in NY, her medical bills would be covered by No-fault, and if she was hurt on the job, workers’ comp would provide coverage. If she had a medical emergency, she could not be turned away by NY hospitals. If she happens to trip and fall or get hurt in or around a building or a store, inquire into med pay coverage. Many places like commercial and residential buildings and stores have these policies. They provide some coverage (generally, $1 - 5K) for someone who is hurt on the property, but the claim has to be made within one year of the incident. I can’t tell you how many cases I handle where the plaintiff’s attorney is totally unaware of this coverage.
When I lost my last job due to downsizing, I had to pay $1500 a month for COBRA coverage. One perk I was able to negotiate when I got my new job was for the company to pay my COBRA premiums for the 4 months till I was eligible for company coverage. It somewhat made up for the 30% cut in pay I had to take in the recession. In looking through our new benefits, I saw that new hires are now covered the first of the month after they start.
I see that OP’s D took a catastrophic policy. I would have done the same for my children.
Does she have a significant other? Could she have claimed domestic partnership? (Is a done deal, from what the OP said, but just musing…)
Oh, yes, domestic partnership is a great option. My D, in NYC, came off my policy at 26, went onto hers and the next day, domestically partnered her bf and put him on her coverage. That was last year. Now, she is considering going onto his coverage since he just took a job with great benefits after spending a year trying to do a start-up.
Back in the day, one of the main reasons I married H was to put him on my health insurance. He was paying $4K a year for coverage in 1991 and I thought it was crazy. I am still not sure if I would have married him at that point had the health care not been an issue. I just thought that the extra money could be used for our children.
My S aged out of our insurance in the spring. His job doesn’t have health insurance yet (they plan to offer it next year - very small company). He wanted to go without insurance, saying that he is healthy. We insisted on putting him on COBRA, and we have been paying the cost. He suddenly began to have health issues and yesterday’s test was very unsettling. It is possible he “could” have cancer. Although we don’t want to jump to conclusions, we are very happy that we stepped in to make sure our S didn’t allow himself to go without health insurance. You never know what can happen.
Former DIL had kidney stones two weeks after they were married and a week after S1 started his after-graduation job (with benefits). She had just moved over from the UK, so no longer had national health care coverage.
S2 is overseas, aged out just before he left. We had a long debate about whether to COBRA him (our plan would cover him overseas, but was very expensive) or to get an overseas coverage plan. He went that route, which required medical underwriting. They don’t cover his ADD meds, so we do. The cost is far less than COBRA and he has decent coverage. Overseas medical expenses are much cheaper than in the US.
Crossing my fingers that your son’s scare turns out to be nothing, @kelsmom.
Never go without insurance. I was young and healthy when I had a gap. I also tried to convince my parents I didn’t need it. 3 days before starting my job I fell down the stairs and ended up in the ER. Convinced me.
My career has been in healthcare. Years ago I had a patient who opted for no health insurance during his gap. He was married with 2 children. A car slammed into him and he suffered a spinal cord injury. Quadriplegic with life threatening injuries. Rehab lasted 6 months. All with no health insurance. This families life was altered forever by the accident and it was made that much worse dealing with the financial issues and no insurance.
@“Cardinal Fang” , thanks.
That’s a federal law, not a NY law.
Not being turned away does NOT mean treatment is free. She WOULD be billed. And if she didn’t/couldn’t pay, her credit would be ruined.
Also, ERs’ only obligation is to stabilize the patient. You can’t go to the ER for, say, pain medication for your injury, or physical therapy, or any kind of follow up care.