My insurance plan changed this year and now DH is ineligible because his employer offers coverage. We used to all be on a family plan but now we'll have to meet 2 separate deductibles! 
Does your insurance (or your SO's) cover a spouse who would otherwise have their own insurance? I didn't realize that companies would do this (though I realize that actually HAVING insurance is such a great benefit as it is).
apricot / 375 posts
It does, but we'd have to pay a fee (about $75/month). DH's last job had the same caveat, I could be covered by we had to pay a monthly fee, I think it was $80/month there.
ETA: the fee only applies if your spouse has coverage through their work. If your spouse has no other coverage (if their work doesn't offer coverage, or like me right now, they aren't working), you don't have to pay the fee.
pear / 1837 posts
Currently he is, but won't be after 1/1 as my new plan has a $150/month fee for spouses who can be covered under their own employer. It will be cheaper to split it up.
grapefruit / 4278 posts
My plan has a $75 monthly fee if your spouse could have coverage through their employer. DH is covered under his employer and E and I are covered under my plan.
honeydew / 7504 posts
Mine does not. When I looked over the benefit packages at this new job, that was the first I'd ever heard of it. I would have had to prove that he either didn't have coverage from his employer, or pays greater than 50% of the premium. So he's on his own plan, and I cover myself and D. Luckily, his insurance is $0 deductible, so we only have to pay my deductible.
ETA: Hubs coverage is 100% employer-paid for just him. If he covered me and D, it would be like $880/month.
hostess / wonderful watermelon / 39513 posts
My husband's insurance covers me. I decline the insurance offered by my work.
hostess / wonderful apple seed / 16729 posts
My insurance doesn't ask. I know certain plans like the HRA plan will only allow my DH to be on the plan if he is also enrolled in an HRA plan, too. Otherwise they don't ask or care.
coconut / 8430 posts
@mrs scrapbook: @LulaBee: @kiddosc: Is that extra fee on top of an increased premium for employee + spouse/family? I have to pay a higher monthly premium for employee + family anyway, which is why I'm bummed that I can't include DH on the plan. I think the reason why they cut SO's who have access to other options is because my employer subsidizes the premiums.
pomegranate / 3113 posts
Mine does. If I were to go on DH's plan, we'd have to cover the full cost of my portion of the premium (they only subsidize the employee portion if the spouse has alternate coverage available). DH is actually double-covered because he gets his employer plan for free, and when we put DD on my insurance it became a family plan (no separate options for employee/spouse, employee/child, employee/spouse/child, etc). So there was no reason not to put him on, too.
wonderful pea / 17279 posts
Yes, I could cover my spouse if I wanted to at a higher premium of course, but it would not be dependent on whether he was eligible to receive his health care through his own company.
grapefruit / 4278 posts
@sunny: Yes, that fee is in addition to increased family premium. They call it a surcharge
apricot / 375 posts
@sunny: We pay a higher premium for the employee + spouse. The fee for a spouse who could be covered by their work is an additional cost, beyond the increased premium.
GOLD / watermelon / 14076 posts
Yes. I'm not sure if there's a fee, though, as it's always been cheaper for us to be on separate plans.
GOLD / wonderful coconut / 33402 posts
DH can't be on my insurance since his work offers him insurance. Or he could put the fee is SO high, like $200 a month.
I have LO on insurance with me.
persimmon / 1128 posts
Yes, with no surcharge. DH declines insurance through his employeer because he's free on my plan. I cover both of our boys, and the "2+" rate is the same whether you have 2 additional dependents or 20, so we added him when LO2 arrived.
coconut / 8472 posts
No, I've never heard of insurance doing this. Would it be any cheaper to put the family on your husband's plan?
GOLD / wonderful apricot / 22646 posts
Yes but we have to pay 600& extra for the same plan as years prior because I'm choosing not to take my own plan.... Irks me to no end
cherry / 197 posts
My husbands company used to do this, but it was only $50 a month surcharge to have me on his plan. His plan was substantially less expensive than me having health ins through my company, so we paid it. His company merged with another and now they don't charge for spouse that declines other insurance.
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
Yes, my husband's employer has instituted this surcharge this year.
persimmon / 1043 posts
My family's insurance is all through my employer and my husband declined what his company offers.. I've never heard of this! Hmm...
watermelon / 14467 posts
I declined what my company offered and am on my husband's family plan. I've never heard of that before!
grapefruit / 4671 posts
My husband is on a family plan through my employer but is also on a plan at work because neither of us pay any premiums. I have never heard of a surcharge!!!
grapefruit / 4355 posts
Nope - We've always been able to be on each other's work plans for no additional surcharge (obviously there is a premium increase though).
Currently, we decline my company's coverage and we are both covered by his company.
honeydew / 7909 posts
My employer does this but dh's doesn't (we use his). Actually, we would have a fee because his birthday is before mine, I believe.
pomegranate / 3809 posts
Wow, I had no idea they could even do something like that! I always heard that people had the option of going with whichever was better. We happen to work at the same company, but there's no penalty or encouragement to be on individual or spouse plans except that the spouse plan is actually more expensive than 2 individuals. But if one of use did not work here and the one that did didn't take a plan, we would get back $1000 for not having a plan with them.
honeydew / 7283 posts
I don't think I've ever heard of this! My DH is on my plan with no surcharge or increase in premiums.
blogger / pomegranate / 3201 posts
Yes, my insurance covers him and Liam and he declines coverage through his job.
pomelo / 5298 posts
Both of our companies disallow insurable spouses. My DH's plan used to charge a surcharge until 2014, now I'm simply not allowed due to having other coverage available. My employer has been doing this for at least 5 years.
Having two plans is frustrating, but we don't have a choice.
wonderful pomelo / 30692 posts
Wow, I didn't know this was a thing. I've declined my work's insurance and am on my husband's instead. But he could have just as easily been on my insurance. We opted for his because it was better for our family. So glad they don't have the stipulation about not covering a spouse who can get their own!
pomelo / 5258 posts
I hadn't heard of this. I'm LO and I are on my husband's insurance even though we could get insurance through my employer. I assume we don't pay an extra fee.
pomelo / 5789 posts
That's so weird!!! My husband and I are on my insurance. We decline the insurance through his company.
pomegranate / 3779 posts
My current company does not have this restriction, but my previous company did. You had to sign an affidavit that your spouse was not eligible for any other insurance plan if you wanted them covered. It has always been cheaper for us to be on our own plans anyway, so it was not a big deal for us.
pomelo / 5524 posts
Yes, both of our companies do, but the premiums are significantly higher for each of us if we cover each other. It ends up being cheaper to be on separate plans.
pear / 1556 posts
My husband's insurance covers me, and I just turn down the coverage from my employer.
pear / 1955 posts
Oh man, that's crazy! I second PP who said to try to get on your husband's plan instead.
pomegranate / 3127 posts
We're both on each other's insurance. My husband's situation at work was very precarious for a long time, so it was an extra safety net.
pomegranate / 3768 posts
Yes, but it is VERY expensive to add a spouse so DH just has his own
grapefruit / 4770 posts
Nope. I have federal insurance and just bought the family plan. He declined his job's insurance, and just showed his job a copy of his new insurance card through mine as proof of insurance. No surcharge though. That's odd!
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