<p>Thank you, bus driver, for the guidance. It’s immensely helpful. We will definitely check into it.</p>
<p>Stevensmamma, we live in Hampton. Our D lives in NOVA, but she has good insurance (thank God. one less thing to worry about).</p>
<p>novaLynxx, thanks for qualifying the term “qualifying event”. Looks like it’s worth looking into to see if our son’s circumstances indeed qualify. I’m so thankful for all the wisdom and willingness to extend help and expertise that the denizens of CC demonstrate time and time again.</p>
<p>I strongly urge you to check into Medicaid. If he’s eligible, he can sign up now – no need to wait for for open enrollment. And they will often pay for medical bills incurred in the 3 or 4 months prior to enrollment. </p>
<p>Any chance you and your husband are in a position to finance the initial doctors visit out of pocket for him? It would get him started while awaiting open enrollment for the insurance. Around here I can’t service my car for $120. </p>
<p>OP, if his income is so low, my guess is that the federal subsidies in the ACA will kick in and cover his cost of obtaining health insurance. Run one of the on line calculators with him. It might even be less expensive than including him on your H’s policy.</p>
<p>If you can’t get him onto your plan, have him sign up for the ACA, for which he’ll receive a subsidy, and then pay the premium for him. You’ve been through this (depression), so you know it is a matter of life and death - especially for young men. He needs treatment, he knows he needs treatment, and so do you. Maybe your H does not understand the insidious nature of clinical depression? It’s not clear whether he is supportive of helping your son get coverage. </p>
<p>With regard to the ACA: I dropped my Anthem plan and purchased one of the ACA plans - it provides MUCH better coverage then we ever had with Anthem, with a deductible 1/4 of what we had, and a lower monthly cost. Recovery from depression is a marathon, but there is hope. Bringing in competent professionals to help takes a huge weight off of your shoulders and allows your son to obtain the support he needs. </p>
<p>Sorry for what your son and family is going through with this depression. Glad that you have more insurance info, as treating this illness in a timely fashion can really matter. Six months at 20% gives the illness considerable traction and could allow for more “defeat” and isolation. Agree with others to seek local help with a sliding fee scale if insurance implementation is delayed. Mental health clinics or community health agencies may provide these services. I would also try to build in regular visits for moral support so that you can share some conversation, see how he’s doing and not rely solely on his initiative, which may wax and wane with his symptoms. Depression is treatable, as you know. Perhaps contact local NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) for appropriate resources. Best with this. </p>
<p>Lots of good advice about insurance here. Back to the illness itself, I just want to say that there is hope even in seemingly hopeless case. My friend’s 23 year old son struggled with severe depression for nearly 10 years and is now doing much, much better. It has taken therapy and a lot of medication trial and error, but at present he is doing very well, living on his own about three hours away from his parents, working and attending university. Keep trying.</p>
<p>Friend of my D’s has a situation similar to your sons. She qualified for medicaid with immediate sign-up.</p>
<p>Allie Brosh is one of my heros. Her first-person accounts of dealing with depression depict the realities of the disorder so well I think they should be required reading. I love her alot…and I have the t-shirt to prove it. (If you’re a hyperbole-and-a-half fan, you’re smiling right now and you’re envying me for my t-shirt.) </p>
<p>Don’t let the insurance questions stand in the way of treatment. Unfortunately, even “good” insurance plans have traditionally excluded or severely limited treatment for mental illness in the past. As a result, however, there are lots of people out there with experience who can help you find lower-cost community resources.</p>
<p>I would recommend that you get into contact with NAMI and ADAA. Also talk to your own physician and/or call the local hospital to help identify free clinics or sliding-scale options in your area. If you have a church, pastoral care options can also be helpful. If medication is part of the treatment, that may be the biggest expense, but healthcare providers and advocacy organization can help your son identify and qualify for discounted meds as well. </p>
<p>The bottom line…help him get treatment any way you can. With or without insurance. </p>
<p>OK - I work in the health insurance business. I am in KY. Your son can stay on your insurance plan until he is 26 regardless of whether he is a full-time student, regardless of whether he is claimed on your taxes and regardless of whether he is married. and regardless of where he lives. The only reason he could not is if he is offered coverage through his own employer. It sounds like this is not the case. OK, number 2. That may not be the best option because depending on which state you are in Medicaid has been expanded and he will most likely qualify. This makes coverage free and mental health conditions are treated as any other illness. If he is not Medicaid eligible because he makes too much money, then no worries because he will qualify for large tax subsidies which would likely make private insurance free or very close to it. You need to talk to an insurance broker asap. Medicaid can be enrolled in at any time. You must wait until open enrollment for the other options. This would be 1/1 for private insurance but could be any time during the year for your husband’s plan. He will need to ask his HR person.</p>
<p>I am hesitant to lie about the qualifying event because if this is discovered you would be responsible for your claims. Besides, lying is just not a good idea.</p>
<p>Help is available. </p>
<p>I just wanna say – Even without insurance, getting him help is the most important thing you can do. You wouldn’t not treat appendicitis if he didn’t have insurance; this is no different.</p>
<p>A few positive thoughts from someone who’s in a similar position:
- Starting to get help at 23 is better than starting it at 33, at 43 or later.
- You’re lucky to have such a good relationship with your son that he opened up to you like this. This will go a long way to helping him address and deal with his illness.
- A combination of meds, therapy and support from parents and friends can work wonders. I’m not saying your son will necessarily be “cured” but he can make enormous progress.
- 23 is young. Make it clear to him that he can certainly still remake his life so that it is more fulfilling, financially and otherwise, than it is currently. Encourage him to pursue his passions to make himself feel better right away. For my son, the outdoors and travel always proved therapeutic. We encourage him to do as much hiking,backpacking and camping as he can. A year ago we sent him to Nepal. He came back a changed young man, much more motivated to work (and it is work) on his emotional issues. The worst is when they give up on themselves. You can’t make progress if you don’t think you can. It sounds like your son is ready to take on the battle. Good for him. Good for all of you. Things could be worse. </p>
<p>Would like to add another wonderful resource for your son which is free - DBSA (Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance). Here’s a link to their website:
<a href=“DBSA - Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance”>DBSA - Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance;
From there, you can locate local support groups. There will likely be at least a couple of groups that meet within easy driving distance of where he lives, and they meet weekly. The people who attend these meetings are a wealth of information. They often know a lot about navigating insurance issues, including Medicaid, SSDI, etc., because they’ve had to do it for themselves in the particular geographical area your son lives in. They will know which physicians take Medicaid, which ones to stay away from, how to get an appointment in a timely fashion, etc. I can’t say enough good about this organization; in fact, family members/friends of those who are depressed/have bipolar disorder are welcome at meetings, too. </p>
<p>A couple of years ago someone put up a link to the hyperboleandahalf blog and I read it, but so much time went by where she never updated it, I had no idea what happened to her. I guess I should go read it again and see what happened to her.</p>
<p>" Your son can stay on your insurance plan until he is 26 regardless of whether he is a full-time student, regardless of whether he is claimed on your taxes and regardless of whether he is married. and regardless of where he lives. The only reason he could not is if he is offered coverage through his own employer"</p>
<p>That last line is absolutely wrong. It is irrelevant whether or not his employer offers coverage. That has changed since the beginning of the year. If he is under 26 he can stay on his parents plan, period.</p>
<p>As far as Medicaid goes, from what I’ve seen, Virginia appears to be one of those states that doesn’t offer Medicaid to individuals at any income level…ie, you have to be a child or have a child to get it, though it sounds like they are trying to change that. Please verify that is correct, don’t take my word for it!</p>
<p>At the bare minimum, I’d call up the insurance company and ask them if your son is on the policy, since you didn’t get sent an insurance card, and ask them what you can do to get him on.</p>
<p>I didn’t read through yet to see if this was mentioned but I thought that VA was a state that opted out of Medicaid expansion. There was a big kerfuffle about it recently. oops . . . busdriver beat me to it 8-} </p>
<p>Here is a link to your local community mental health agency. They should be able to provide assistance at little or no cost. <a href=“http://www.hnncsb.org”>http://www.hnncsb.org</a></p>
<p>The problem with ACA at this point is that it’s closed to new enrollment for 2014, unless there is a qualifying event (getting married or moving to another state, for example). It’s a good option for next year, and thankfully the law requires all plans to cover mental health. As I said above, and want to stress, if he’s eligible for Medicaid, he could enroll right now. Please check into that.</p>
<p>If he’s not eligible for Medicaid, next year he may qualify for a hefty subsidy on a marketplace plan. You can get a feel for what the options will be in 2015 by going to <a href=“https://www.healthcare.gov/marketplace/b/welcome/”>https://www.healthcare.gov/marketplace/b/welcome/</a>. Worst case, you’ll be able to add him to your plan. Open enrollment begins Nov. 15 for Jan. 1, 2015 coverage.</p>
<p>In the meantime, another thing to check into is local churches. A large Presbyterian church in my area runs a counseling center – trained and certified therapists, not religious indoctrination. We found a counselor for my D there at about half the going rate. They did great work together.</p>