Every responsible parent, no matter if you are the actual parent or the step parent, should want to cover the children on their medical insurance policy when ever it is possible. The more coverage a child has the better protected the child is especially when you consider that both parents are equally responsible for the medical expenses should the child get sick or injured. So the more insurance coverage the child has, the less money is bound to cost in the long run.
The process to add your step-children on your medical insurance does not have to be a hard process. Most insurance have set guidelines and rules pertaining to what type of paperwork that is required to fill out. They also have their own rules as to what is and is not considered an insurable child. In all of this the best way to go about this is to do your homework first. Get your insurance documentation and read through it closely. Highlight anything you have a question about or don’t understand for latter.
While knowing your insurance’s information is important so is looking at your state laws. Knowing your rights regarding insurances in your state is also something that is very helpful. Just because and insurance has a policy that states one thing one way in the paperwork does not mean it’s the way it is or that there are no exceptions to the policy. Sometimes it’s in there because they don’t want to do it and they know if it’s pushed they have to honor state law. The insurance companies know that have to follow state law to do business in your state. The more knowledge you have the more you are able to protect yourself and your family form insurances.
On such issues is covering step-children. Insurances often state that step-children that are not living with you can not be covered. While this is true in most cases there are things you can do to work around it. Many times especially in companies like major hotel casinos that have excellent health insurance don’t want to cover more people than they absolutely have to. If one of the adult has a court order to cover the children on insurance they will honor a court order. So if your serious about wanting to do what’s best for the children it is something to add to the next court order.
If you are unsure of anything in the paperwork or the state laws make an appointment with your benefit’s department. Make sure you ask all your questions and have a strong understanding of what your policy will and will not cover. When you have a strong understanding of the whole process all that is left is filling out the forms and submitting them. Make sure to have all the supporting documentation that may be needed.
Medical insurance for children is an important issue and no matter if you get along with the other parent or not know that you are doing what’s best for the children. As parents it is our job to make sure our children are protected from all the things we can because there are so many things out there that we can’t protect them from.