Implications of Scoliosis Surgery - insurance

August 19, 2007

I have been looking into the insurance implications because my son, who has

had scoliosis surgery, will turn 23 in December. I have Anthem Blue Cross

Blue Shield and this is what I have discovered:

When the dependent on your insurance turns 23, he/she can remain on your

policy for the remainder of that calendar year. This is where a January

birthday

can be a huge advantage since you could keep him/her on your policy until the

following December. But, having a December 25 birthday (yes, a Christmas

baby!!!), he goes off my policy 6 days later at the end of the month.

He can 'roll' onto his own policy with no preexisting conditions. Here's

the catch, I have the highest level of coverage and he will be able to remain

with that level of coverage when he rolls off my policy. HOWEVER, if he ever

leaves that policy he can never return to BC/BS at that high level of

coverage.

His individual policy cost plus my policy cost, which is lowered because he

is no longer on it, is about $45 more that I currently pay for the two of us on

my policy. There are other situations that I know of that worked out

better than mine - I have a friend whose daughter has disability due to

narcolepsy

and they have been able to keep her on their policy even though she is 25 due

to the disability's effect on her ability to get a full time job with

benefits. I tried this and was told that it wasn't an option with my policy.

I hope this helps, it is good to be forewarned so you can be prepared. You

can bet that I'll be right on top of rolling him off onto his own policy even

though my insurance company assured me that they would notify me a month

before his birthday. This is one important issue that can't fall between the

cracks.

**************************************

Get a sneak peek of the all-new AOL

Recommended Posts