Insurance provides reduced-cost healthcare.
Many companies only allow individuals to make changes to an insurance policy once per year. Unless you married him within the past two months, you may have to wait until this time at his company before you can get on his plan. The same will apply for your current insurance company. You may experience a lapse in coverage or the burden of paying two insurance premiums until you can drop your own insurance plan.
Open Enrollment
Typically, you can only change your insurance plan during open enrollment, a period that generally happens just once a year in work places. During this time, you may make changes to a current insurance plan, obtain insurance or drop it altogether. Open enrollment for each company may happen at different times of the year. For example, your spouse may have open enrollment in March, while your company's open enrollment may not occur until November.
Life-Changing Events
Exceptions to open enrollment can occur if you experience any life-changing events that substantially change your health care needs. These could include marriage, the birth of a child, separation or divorce. When such events occur, you have a certain amount of time to notify your workplace so that changes to your insurance may happen immediately. If you and your new spouse are recently married, he will have a certain amount of time, usually 30 to 60 days, to add you right away. Additionally, if you and your spouse are expecting a child, he can immediately make changes to his insurance plan to cover his new dependents, both you and the child.
Loss of Job
If you lose your job before husband's open enrollment period, you may choose to continue paying your premiums to keep your current insurance. In this instance, the open-enrollment period to drop your insurance when you enroll on your husbands insurance may not apply. You may also elect to drop your own insurance altogether and wait for your husband's open enrollment period to become included on his insurance. Check with your insurance company after loss of employment to determine your options for dropping the insurance when you no longer need it.
Medicaid
You are allowed keep Medicaid while having a secondary insurance policy from your husband's employer. Medicaid can assist in covering expenses your new insurance may not cover. Read your husband's insurance handbook and compare it with your current Medicaid insurance to determine whether keeping it will help save money. If not, contact the Medicaid office within your county to drop your Medicaid insurance once you are on your husband's insurance plan.
Medicare
You may make changes or voluntarily drop Medicare through an open enrollment period determined by your Medicare provider. Similar to Medicaid, Medicare may help to reduce certain expenses your new insurance may not cover. Upon reviewing your new insurance handbook, contact your local Medicare office to determine when you can make changes or drop your Medicare altogether.
